
Il^YESTIGATIOl^ 



MADE BY THE 



STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE INDUSTRY 



DEVELOPMENT OP THE INDUSTRY, UNFRUITFULNESS 
OF VARIETIES, METHODS OF CULTURE, PRUN- 
ING, PROCESSING OF FRUIT, ETC. 




CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE. 



PLATE I. 




FLOWERING OLIVE BRANCH— (Natural Size). 



I^YESTIGATIOl^ 



MADE BY THE 



STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE INDUSTRY 



DEVELOPMENT OF THE INDUSTRY, UNFRUITFULNESS 
OF VARIETIES, METHODS OF CULTURE, PRUN- 
ING, PROCESSING OF FRUIT, ETC. 



EEPORT TO GOVERNOR GAGE. 



UUHANGti), 





A. J. JOHNSTON, 



SACRAMENTO: 

: : SUPERINTENDENT STATE PRINTING. 

1900. 



CALIFORNIA STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE 



ELLWOOD COOPER President Santa Barbara 

Commissioner for the Los Angeles District. 

FRANK H. BUCK ....Vice-President Vacaville 

Commissioner for the Napa District. 

WILLIAM B. GESTER.. Treasurer Newcastle 

Commissioner for the El Dorado District. 

RUSS D. STEPHENS .Auditor Sacramento 

Commissioner for the State at Large. 

THOMAS A. RICE .... ..El Rio 

Commissioner for the State at Large. 

H. WEINSTOCK Sacramento 

Commissioner for the Sacramento District. 

BEN M. MADDOX Visalia 

Commissioner for the San Joaquin District. 

A. BLOCK Santa Clara 

Commissioner for the San Francisco District. 

W. J. HOTCHKISS... Healdsburg 

Commissioner for the Sonoma District. 



B. M. LELONG ...Secretary and Chief Horticultural Officer 

ALEXANDER CRAW ..Quarantine Officer and Entomologist 

ELLA F. HALLAHAN ....Clerk 



OFFICES: 
State Capitol, Sacramento. 
Branch Office, Clay Street Dock, San Francisco. 



Califoknia State Board of Horticulture, 
Sacramento, February 28, 1900. 

To His Excellency Henry T. Gage, Governor of California: 

Sir: Urgent requests having been made to this Board for an 
investigation of the supposed unfruitfulness of the olive in 
difi'erent portions of the State, and also for information on 
methods of planting, pruning, extraction of oil, etc., it was 
determined to make an examination of the causes^of complaint 
and to furnish the desired information. These deductions, in 
concise form, are embodied in the report herewith submitted 
by our Secretary, who was detailed to make the investigation, 
being a research covering almost every section of the State 
where the olive is grown. The investigation not yet being 
complete, this will form part of a report on same, to be con- 
cluded in our Biennial Report at the close of the present fiscal 
year. 

Respectfully submitted. 

ELLWOOD COOPER, 

President. 



CONTENTS. 



INTRODUCTION 7 

THE OLIVE 10' 

PROPAGATION 11 

SOILS 19 

OLIVES IN POOR SOILS - 23 

UNFRUITFULNESS OP THE OLIVE 25 

TRANSPLANTING 29 

PRUNING. 32 

GRAFTING AND BUDDING 38 

VARIETIES ^ 49 

The "Mission" Olive... 50 

Introduced Vakieties 52 

Cultivated Varieties 53 

Ornamental Varieties 56 

EXTRACTING OLIVE OIL 57 

PICKING APPARATUS 68 

OLIVE OIL FILTERING OR CLARIFYING 70 

PICKLING, PROCESSING, ETC 71 

GRADING... 78 

PESTS AFFECTING THE OLIVE 79 

NATURAL ENEMIES OF THE BLACK SCALE 82 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE INDUSTRY. 



By B. M. LELONG, Secretary of State Board of Horticulture, and Chief 

Horticultural Officer of California, aided by growers 

throughout the State. 



Historic records tell us that the olive tree was introduced 
into California in 1769, from San Bias, Mexico, by an expedi- 
tion of Franciscans sent to take charge of the Jesuit missions 
in California. It appears from the ship's manifest that one 
Jose de Galvez, who was "Visitor-General" and secular head, 
with Father Serra, proceeded to make arrangements for the 
establishment of settlements. He seemed to be farseeing, 
for it was found that he had caused to be shipped to "Alta" 
California, flower, vegetable, and fruit seeds for garden and 
orchard, and grain for the field. The ship's manifest does not 
show that any trees or cuttings were brought. 

The first seeds of the olive are said to have been planted at 
the Mission San Diego, and those seeds (which Galvez had been 
so provident in sending) grew and prospered. The Fathers 
built new missions, and among the first trees planted was the 
olive, grown from cuttings taken from trees of the San Diego 
mission. All the mission orchards were very small, and some 
had but few trees, but those trees played an important part in 
the horticultural history of our State, for they laid the foun- 
dation of a gigantic industry and furnished stocks for many 
groves, which to-day may be styled the " prehistoric " orchards 
of the State. 

For many years, a century or more, only one variety 
of olive, the "Mission," so called from its having been first 
grown at the various historic missions, was known in the 
State. Many of those trees still live and bear remunerative 
crops under favorable conditions. That the larger part of 
these primitive trees were grown from seed there is but little 
doubt, for in almost every mission olive orchard there are trees 
growing side by side of entirely distinct types. Some are of a 



8 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

willowy habit, the fruit large and roundish, which matures 
early and evenly; others are tall, lofty, sturdy trees, bearing 
elongated fruit and of very uneven ripening; while still 
others are of a dwarfish habit of growth, the fruit small and of 
very little value. It is not uncommon to find olive plants that 
have sprung up spontaneously under trees from pits of fruit 
that dropped, especially where the soil had not been disturbed 
for a season. I have gathered many such plants for several 
seasons. It is reasonable to suppose that this also occurred in 
the primitive days at the mission orchards; the plants, no 
doubt being cared for, in time became as large as their parents 
and to-day are probably numbered among the historic trees of 
our State. This no doubt is also accountable for the great 
variability of the different types of the Mission olive found in 
different localities, and especially in mission orchards. 

In the matter of climate, California is well adapted to olive 
culture. The tree requires a moderately uniform temperature 
and will not withstand extremes of either heat or cold. It is 
essentially a fruit requiring an invariable climate, being found 
between 45 degrees north and 1 8 degrees south. The altitude at 
which the olive will grow depends upon the latitude. The farther 
north we go in the olive. belt the lower the altitude at which it 
will thrive, and the farther south the higher the altitude suited 
to.it. In the Sierra Nevada range, in latitude 37 degrees north, 
it will do well at 3,000 feet. Locations visited daily by a 
gentle breeze, especially in the blossoming season, are well 
suited to the olive, while intense heat at this period may ruin 
all prospects of a crop, and a low temperature, say 14°, is fatal 
to the tree, while 26° is fatal to the fruit. 

The culture of the olive for commercial purposes forms an 
industry that, with proper protection, should be regarded as 
one of the safest in California, and under favorable conditions 
the most profitable of all branches of horticulture. Large 
areas of land have been planted to this fruit, in most of which 
it finds all the conditions of soil and climate perfectly adapted 
to its growth and fruitage. 

*"The published estimate of the number of olive trees (by 
County Assessors to the State Board of Equalization) now 
growing is 2,500,000. The number of pounds that a tree 

*Address by Hon. Ellwood Cooper, State Fruit-Growers' Convention, 
November, 1897. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE INDUSTRY. 9 

in full bearing will produce under favorable conditions is 250. 
For the purposes of this article we will assume that the trees 
will bear only in alternate years; we will allow also, for 
deficiencies from various causes, 20 per cent; we will then have 
250,000,000 pounds. Allow one half of this product to be 
pickled and dried, which would amount to 400,000 barrels of 
50 gallons each — 6,000 carloads. The other, to be made into 
oil, would give 1,000,000 cases of 12 bottles each — 2,000 car- 
loads. According to correspondence which I have in my pos- 
session, there will be a large additional planting this coming 
season. Can such quantity be sold under present conditions? 
This condition of the industry should be carefully considered 
by those who have orchards, and especially so by those who 
intend planting. We have, therefore, a great missionary work 
to do in educating the human family up to the realization of 
the importance of consuming the product of the olive tree. 
That such knowledge sooner or later will be universal among 
intelligent people is my conviction. Also, that the object of 
our energies and labor: to work for the health, happiness, and 
prosperity of unborn generations, is a very worthy one. But we 
want something ourselves. The greatest drawback to the sale 
of olive oil is the adulterations and substitutions put on the 
market with fraudulent labels and fraudulent statements; the 
purpose being to deceive the consumers for larger margins of 
gain. The diflSculty in selling the olive pickles arises from 
want of knowledge in processing them or from want of care. 
There is now an active market for the ripe Mission olive, if well 
pickled, and if the growers will take the care and do it properly 
there will soon be a market for a very large quantity." 



10 



STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 



THE OLIVE. 



The Genus OLEA, Linnssus. — Calyx-Perianth (floral envelope) monophyl- 
lous (one-leaved), tubular, small, mouth quadridentate (having four teeth 
on the edge), erect, deciduous (falling off). Corolla monopetalous, infundi- 
buliform (funnel-shaped); tube cylindrical, of the length of calyx; limb 
quadripartite (divided to the base into four parts), flat, laciniae (narrow, 
slender portion of the edge) semi-ovate. Stamens two, filaments opposite, 
subulate (awl-shaped), short; anthers erect. Pistil germ subrotund (almost 
round); style simple, very short; stigma bifld (two-cleft), thick, lacinise 
emarginate (notched at the summit). Drupe (stone fruit) subovate, glabrous 
(hairless), unilocular. Seed an ovate-oblong (oblong with one end narrower 
than the other), wrinkled nut. 

The Flower or Blossom. — The flower or blossom of the 

olive develops and is 
borne on growth of the 
preceding year. The 
olive puts forth growth 
in the spring immedi- 
ately after the awaken- 
ing of vegetation. The 
leaves of the first de- 
velopment appear of a 
lighter green than the 
others. A little before 
the beginning of April 
(in w^arm regions, in 
March) there appear in 
the axis of the first leaves 
greenish panicles, sus- 
tained by a common 
peduncle; in proportion 
as the system gains in 
consistency and growth 
these round panicles take 
a pyriform shape, and at 
this stage may be seen 
appendages or stipules 
turned down; this is 
the bud of the blossom, 
which discloses in most sections in May, and in some (along 




Floweriug olive branch— reduced one half. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — PROPAGATION. 11 

the coast and in the bay counties) not before June, while in the 
warm regions as early as March or April. The olives produced 
from the flowers first expanded are the most certain to reach 
maturity, the second less, while those of the last are generally 
lost. The bloom is susceptible to extremes of cold or heat. A 
continued hot spell, rain, cold, or wind during the l)lossoming 
time prevents fecundation. 

The floral symmetry of the olive is very characteristic. The 
fruit presents variations, the importance of which has been 
diversely appreciated according to the epoch and the state of 
science. At the time when external morphology alone was 
furnishing characters, the fruit, with its different forms, seemed 
of capital importance. Now it is known that its origin is 
always the same, that its differences are superficial, and more 
important and desirable characters are preferably considered. 

Leaf. — The leaves of Oleacese are opposite, seldom being 
alternate, simple or paucifoliate (a few leaflets), pennate 
(feather-shaped), entire or toothed, always destitute of stipules 
(appendages at the base of leaves). The leaf is always 
covered by an epidermis formed of a single layer of cells rich 
in tannin. 

Fruit. — The fruit is a drupe, fleshy, drupaceous (of the form 
of a drupe) or bacciform (of the form of a berry), indehiscent 
(not opening spontaneously at maturity); two ovules in each 
cell, laterally fixed near the summit. Seeds single by abortion, 
of three ovules, rarely two, in each cell; seed albuminous, 
with superior radicle. Inflorescence paniculate, trichotomous 
(divided in threes), or fasciculate (growing in bunches), with 
centripetal primary branches, sometimes centrifugal. 



PROPAGATION. 



From Seed. — Propagating olive trees from seed is very 
tedious, and requires extraordinary care. The pits are quite 
hard, often requiring from one to two seasons to germinate. The 
raising of olive plants from seed is the most natural method, 
and the one producing the most healthy and robust trees, the 



12 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

roots being more symmetrical; but as the plants make slow 
growth the first few years, a longer time is required to grow 
trees by this metliod than by any other. Trees grown from 
seed seldom produce fruit in less than eight years, and the 
k^ plants must be at least two years old before they can 
-^y ^ be budded or grafted. 
^"^ Those intending to plant pits should carefully select 
V--V those from varieties having perfect kernels. It is not 
V necessary that the variety from which the pits are 
\^^ taken for planting be one possessing high qualities for 
-^ pickles or oil, because all fruits when grown from seed 
'^J^ have a tendency to revert to the wild type, or become 
\ r of a modified type, entirely distinct from the parent 
\ tree; but it is important that the tree be of a thrifty 
^"^^^w sort. Seed from dwarf trees should be avoided, as they 
^ produce plants of a still smaller habit. 
- The seeds, having been freed from the pulp, are 

^ washed in water containing some lye or ashes, to 
remove all the oil adhering to them; they are then 
washed in clear water, and, after drying in the shade, 
are mixed with moist sand and kept in a moistened 
condition till spring, to be then sown. The use of lye 
is necessary to render the shell of the pit a little less 
compact, in order that it may be penetrated by moist- 
ure. The lye roughens the shell and thus gives access 
to humidity. 

The sowing is done in February or March. As olive 
seeds do not all germinate the first year of sowing, it 
is advisable not to destroy the seed-bed until the end 
of the second year. Olive pits often continue to germi- 
nate in certain quantities for over two years. In order 
to hasten germination pits may be advantageously 
split by use of an iron vise. The longer part of the 
pit is placed between the jaws of the vise, and by turn- 
ling plant, iug the scrcw the shell is split. It is not necessary to 
(Reduced take out the kernel; on the contrary, it is better to 
one half.) jg^ve it in the cracked shell. 

The seeds are sown in ordinary seed-boxes, with bottoms 
perforated to admit of good drainage. The boxes are then filled 
with fine earth (sandy loam) to within three inches of the top; 
the kernels are spread on top of this and covered with one 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE. 



PLATE II. 




YOUNG SEEDLING OLIVE PLANTS, 

Of Spontaneous Germination, from Seed of Fallen Fruit, Under 
Orchard Trees. 



14 



STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 



inch of sand. The boxes are kept moist and shaded for awhile. 
This method obviates the necessity of soaking the pits in lye to 
deprive them of their oily coverings, and a person can easily 
prepare some six hundred or more kernels in a day. 

Large Cuttings. — The olive "takes" readily from cuttings. 
The cuttings preferred are those taken from mature trees and are 

made from twelve to fourteen 
inches long, of two-year old 
wood, or older, and from one 
to one and one half inches in 
diameter. They are taken from 
the trees in December or Janu- 
ary, and trenched in some con- 
venient place, preferably in the 
shade, where they are kept till 
the middle of February or the 
middle of March, or later, when 
they are planted in nursery 
rows. The ground is thorough- 
ly prepared. The cuttings are 
planted from twelve to thirty 
inches apart, and about ten to 
twelve inches deep. The soil 
is hoed toward them on both 
sides, leaving the cuttings cov- 
ered to within an inch or two 
of the top, in the center of a 
ridge. The loose soil around 
the top protects the cuttings 
from being scorched by the 
sun. As the cuttings begin to 
grow, the shoots put forth 
are not disturbed. They are 
allowed to grow for one season without pruning. The removal 
of the growth the first season gives the cuttings a shock 
that prevents the formation and growth of the roots. Many 
growers plant cuttings at an angle of about forty-five degrees. 
The season following all shoots and growth are removed, 
except one which is to form the tree. This one is carefully 
trimmed, and a stake is driven close to it, to which it is tied. 




Cuttings of dififerent sizes, prepared 
for planting— reduced. 

through the loose soil and 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE. 



PLATE III. 




THE DIFFERENT FORMS OF GROWING OLIVES FROM 

SMALL CUTTINGS— (Reduced One Half). 



16 



STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 



The portion of the cutting above the apex of the shoot is cut 
away, and the wound covered with either grafting wax or 
rubber paint. The cuttings are kept in the nursery as long 
as the grower chooses, giving them careful attention, when 
they are taken up and planted in orchard form. 

*" We plant the cuttings fourteen inches long and from one 
inch in diameter up to two and a half inches, six or eight 
inches apart in the nursery row, and the rows five or six feet 
apart. We also make cuttings three quarters of an inch; these 
cuttings we plant in the field where the tree is to grow perma- 
nently. We plant diagonally — that is, the top to the north — 
to keep the sunlight as much as possible from cracking open 
the limb that is exposed. We put the cuttings about ten inches 
deep at the foot. The cuttings are taken from the trees just as 
soon as we pick the crop." 

Small Cuttings. — This method is in all respects similar to 
the "tip'' system, except that the cuttings are made from small 
branches. The branches must be well matured; they are cut 
into pieces, each containing at least six leaves. The lower 
leaves are removed, as in the "tip" method, and the upper 






Small cuttings— reduced one half. 

ones trimmed off", as per illustrations. Both ends are cut off" 
close with a sharp knife, as a clean cut hastens callusing and 
the formation of rootlets. The cuttings are taken from the 
trees in autumn and winter and are planted in the same man- 
ner as in the "tip" method. 

*Hon. EUwood Cooper, Santa Barbara. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE. 



PLATE IV. 




ONE-YEAR-OLD OLIVE PLANTS. 

Grown from "Tip" Cuttings, Showing Development of Root 
System. (Reduced.) 



2oc 



17 



18 



STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 



From Tips. — The extreme ends or tips of branches are 
taken from the trees in June, when the trees are in a semi- 
dormant state, and also in the fall and winter, according 
to state of the trees, when the growth is in its best condi- 
tion. The cuttings are made about four to six inches long, as 
per illustration. These tips are gathered indiscriminately, 
by cutting them with pruning shears, and taken to a bench, 
where they are prepared for planting. In their prepara- 
tion a sharp knife is used.'?. The lower leaves are cut oft" close 
to the bud, and the ends of, the cuttings are cut obliquely, to 
within a quarter of an inch of the lower buds. The upper 
^/- leaves are trimmed to prevent them from ear- 

off rapidly the fluids by evaporation, and 
to prolong the life of the 
cuttings until callused and 
rootlets are formed. The 
cuttings are placed close in 
sand-beds especially pre- 
pared or in ordinary propa- 
gating-boxes. Propagating- 
houses with bottom heat are 
preferred. The following 
winter they are transplanted 
into pots or in nursery row. 




Tip cuttings— reduced one half. 



From Suckers. — Shoots 
that germinate spontane- 
ously between the roots, at their insertion on the trunk, on the 
trunk itself, and on the large roots exposed to the sun, are 
termed "suckers." These suckers when properly developed 
are turned to advantage for propagation. These shoots are 
left to grow at will for awhile; then the trunk of the tree is 
banked up with earth, so as to cause the suckers to take root, 
which they generally emit at their base. They are pulled off 
the parent tree in the winter, with a good portion of roots 
attached; are then trimmed and planted in nursery, and in a 
season become good trees and fit for orchard planting. 

By Layering or Stools.— This is the only system which 
can be said to be perfectly safe in the propagation of olive 
trees. There are no risks to be encountered, and in two or 



CALIFORNIA OLTVE CULTURE SOILS. 19 

three seasons large trees ready for planting are obtained. For 
this purpose old stocks are planted, the body being cut off to 
cause it to throw out numerous shoots, which, when they are of 
sufficient growth, are turned down and trenched. Growers 
adopt different modes of treating the shoots in layering them. 
Some cause the shoot to be partly broken by bending, while others 
cut an incision, leaving a projecting portion of the shoot on 
the side that is to remain downward when covered with soil. 
At any rate, the portion wherever broken or cut soon begins 
to callus over and to throw out roots. In one or two seasons 
these shoots are cut from the parent tree, the roots and top 
trimmed, and are set out either in orchard or in nursery row. 

From Sprouts. — The sprouts as they pot forth along the 
body of the tree, which has been cut back so as to force it to 
throw out numerous shoots, are gouged out, taking as much 
of the bark and wood as possible. These are planted as in 
the above methods, and readily take root. The advantage 
this system has over all others is that these sprouts can 
be gathered at any time of the year when the trees are 
growing. This method is closely allied to the "ovule" system 
of propagation. 



SOILS. 



A great feature of the olive tree, and one that gives it an 
important position among the fruit trees of our State, is the 
fact that it thrives in a greater diversity of soils and locations 
than most other trees. In the low lands of the valleys it 
does well ; the berries become large and pulpy, and are best 
suited for pickles. Oil made from fruit grown on trees receiv- 
ing too much moisture is very hard to clarify. Along the foot- 
hills the olive finds a congenial home, producing oil that cannot 
be excelled. On rocky land, wherever there is soil sufficient to 
give it a footing, the olive will grow, and with additional care 
attains perfection. Heavy or damp land is not suitable for 
it— not that it will not grow on such soils, but because the 
blossom and the fruit are sensitive to cold and will invari- 
ably chill and drop off the tree. The quality of the oil from 



20 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

injured berries is also affected. The theory for many years 
advanced, to the effect that the olive would grow and produce 
bountiful crops on soil too poor to grow anything else, or on 
soil and in locations where other trees would not grow, has 
been exploded. While the olive does thrive on rugged soils 
and in locations where other fruit could not be found profitable, 
it must not be supposed that it does well under neglect or will 
not repay care. Careful cultivation and proper fertilization 
are amply rewarded in increased quantity and superior quality 
of fruit. 

Analyses made of the ashes of the wood, leaves, and fruit of 
the olive give the following results • 

Wood. Leaves. Fruit. 

Potash., 20.60 24.81 54.03 

Lime -. 63.02 56.18* 15.72 

Magnesia ■.-. .-. 2.31 5.18 4.38 

Sulphuric acid 3.09 3.01 1.19 

Silica .--. - 3.82 3.75 5.58 

Phosphoric acid - 4.77 3.24 7.30 

Phosphate of iron ". 1.39 1.07 2.24 

Chloride of potassium LOO 2.76 9.56 

Totals 100.00 100.00 100.00 

It will be seen from this analysis that the wood and leaves 
carry a very large proportion of lime, while in the berries 
potash predominates greatly; From this it will naturally be 
inferred that soil suitable for the olive should be heavily 
impregnated with these elements, or, being absent, they will 
have to be supplied. 

The olive will not do well in poorly drained soil, for while 
it requires a proper amount of moisture, the tree cannot thrive 
with its roots in standing water. 

To summarize, the olive will do best in a soft, friable soil, 
moderately warm and moist, carrying an abundance of lime 
and potash. These conditions are furnished throughout a 
greater portion of California, where also can be found the 
climatic conditions required by it. 

Preparation of the Soil.— Thorough preparation of the soil 
for the olive should be the rule, and it should be borne in mind 
that, so far as the planting of the orchard is concerned, it 
is done forever. When the young tree is transferred to the 
orchard it receives a shock, to recover from which it requires 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — SOILS. 21 

the most tender care. If planted on land which has been well 
prepared for it — well loosened, properly aerated, and thor- 
oughly pulverized — the young rootlets find no difficulty in the 
way of their extension, and the tree soon recovers and makes 
a vigorous growth. If, on the other hand, the land has 
been merely skimmed over with the plow and the subsoil left 
untouched, the young roots are checked in their growth, and 
the trees receive a setback from which they seldom recover. 
The first year of its life in the orchard determines the whole 
future of the tree, and whether it shall be a success or a failure 
depends largely upon the preparation of the land for its 
reception. 

Cultivation. — The application of suitable fertilizers at proper 
times is an important factor in successful olive culture. 
The fertilizers should be selected with a view to the require- 
ments of the tree, as indicated by the analyses of fruit, wood, 
and leaf, given elsewhere. While the olive rejoices in the 
natural looseness of sandy, gravelly, and stony soils, and 
in freedom from standing water, it is not of the class of trees 
that do best in sterile soils. Nutriment is necessary to its 
productiveness, and if this does not exist naturally in the soil, 
or has been exhausted, it must be supplied. In growing olives, 
as with all other crops, the continuous cropping of the soil 
Avill gradually exhaust it of the constituent elements of the 
plant, and these must be supplied from some source. Anything 
that can be used to enrich the soil is valuable. The orchard 
should be kept free from weeds, which sap the soil of its 
moisture, and the surface of the ground should be kept well 
pulverized. 

*"I need not say to any horticulturist that cultivation can- 
not be too thorough; good tilth is an exhibition of 'faith and 
work,' which comes very near being an absolute guarantee of 
success. But even this will not in all places succeed without 
another artificial help, viz, water, for it is the exception and 
not the rule where olive trees will do their best without irriga- 
tion; and wherever nearly perfect conditions do not naturally 
exist, and irrigation is resorted to to establish such conditions, 
it has become nearly or quite an established fact that for each 

*Hon. Frank A. Kimball, of National City. 



22 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

dollar so expended at least ten dollars may be expected in 
increased growth and quantity of fruit. 

"When taken from the nursery (at two years from planting 
of cutting), planted in orchard and properly cared for, the olive 
tree should pay all expenses of cultivation the third year. There 
are instances on record where cuttings planted in orchard have 
produced sufficient fruit the third year to pay all expenses of 
cultivation for that year; but this is not a safe basis for calcu- 
lation, for it is only with large cuttings, taken from vigorous 
'trees, and planted in a voluptuous soil and under the most 
favorable conditions, that such a result may be obtained. 

"In selecting a location for an olive plantation, great care 
should be taken to secure a well-drained tract, for there is no 
one thing which will so militate against success as a close, 
clayey soil with imperfect drainage. 

" Exposure also cuts an important figure in the profits to be 
derived from an olive orchard. A southern exposure hastens 
maturity of the fruit, and it must always be kept in mind that 
when the olive approaches ripeness it must be gathered, if first 
quality of oil be expected; true, the quantity of oil is much 
less, but the quality is much finer than that pressed from fully 
matured fruit. A northerl}^ exposure will prolong the period 
of ripening many weeks; so, by selecting land having both a 
northerly and a southerly exposure, a person, by his own labor, 
can harvest at least one half more fruit than if either one of the 
exposures were selected. It is often said that any kind of soil 
is good enough for olive trees, and inferentially that the poorer 
the soil the more profitable the crop. If this be so, it is con- 
trary to all other efibrts of nature of which I have any knowl- 
edge; but it is not so. But it is a substantial fact, however, 
that an olive orchard which has long been cropped, poorly 
cultivated, and not fertilized, will make a record for unprofit- 
ableness which the owner may not long disregard. In such 
cases, generous fertilizing and good cultivation will cause a 
response which cannot be mistaken. Good location and good 
soil are two elements which will act as large factors in success- 
ful olive-growing. 

" We labor under peculiar conditions in California. As a 
rule, we do not care to see a drop of rain from the first of May 
to the first of December. During what is termed the 'rainy 
season,' and after any considerable fall of rain, the ground 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — IN POOR SOILS. 23 

should be thoroughly 'cultivated,' or plowed and harrowed; 
and after the ' rainy season ' is over, the surface of the ground 
should be well stirred at least once each month, so that it may 
be in perfect condition to absorb atmospheric moisture during 
the 'dry season' and be all ready for the first rain of the suc- 
ceeding 'rainy season.' Two purposes are thus accomplished: 
the land is kept in good tilth, and no weeds can raise their 
unsightly and unprofitable heads." 



OLIVES IN POOR SOILS. 



When olive culture was in its incipiency almost every one 
contemplating going into the business sought information 
from " him that knew," and was ever ready to follow his 
advice. The advice, then so freely given, that "the olive 
should be planted on soils where no other tree would grow," 
was followed to a considerable extent; but now all regret it, as 
that advice proved to be erroneous and misleading, and caused 
the financial ruin of many who took it. The olive, as do other 
trees, requires the best conditions of climate, soil, etc., and 
without these, paying returns from the tree cannot be expected. 
None of the orchards that were planted in locations where 
hardly anything else would grow, as was advised, have as yet 
produced fruit to pay for their cultivation, and in most 
instances have not produced fruit enough to pay for the 
gathering; but where the trees have been given renewed atten- 
tion by way of pruning, irrigation, fertilization, etc., they have 
invariably responded by producing bountiful crops. In many 
sections trees planted on poor soils were unable to withstand 
the drought of the past two seasons. They shed their foliage 
and the limbs died back, as shown in the accompanying 
illustration (p. 24). 

There are lands, especially in the coast regions, that retain 
their moisture, which by thorough cultivation do not require 
to be irrigated. To soils that are not retentive, in which olive 
orchards have been planted, by advice that the tree would 
grow and thrive without irrigation, these remarks apply. 



24 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

In 1 893 the writer gave to the public the result of experiments 
to develop large olives by frequent irrigation. No sooner Avas 
mention made by the public press of the results attained than 
criticisms began to appear against irrigation, based on the 
theory that the tree did not require it. Specimens of fruit 
taken from young trees grown without irrigation were brought 
to meetings. The writer then said that the trees from 
which the fruit was taken were small and took but little 
moisture to nourish them, but as they would grow older would 
cease to bear fruit in paying quantities unless irrigated. What 




An orchard planted on jioor soil; did not withstand the drought of 1893-9.' 

was the result? The trees on becoming large, required the 
necessary moisture to develop their growth, which had now 
assumed immense proportions. The soil could not furnish the 
requirements of the trees, and in the summer they lost the larger 
portion of their leaves. They remained in this semi-dormant 
condition until the rainy season set in, or moisture in the soil 
began to rise. Most of the fruit dropped, and what did not fall 
did not attain a size suitable for pickling. This condition 
of affairs continued until the growers resolved to apply water. 
After a season or more of demonstration, they found irrigation 
to be one of the essential means through which a crop of fruit 
can be assured. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — UNFRUITFULNESS. 25 

*"A popular idea is, that if land is not fit for anything else 
it will do for olives. I do not think so. They have a saying 
in Italy, 'No manure, no oil.' The reason why we do not get 
olives is, the trees are starved, if want of water can be called 
starvation. For lack of water the soil cannot furnish the 
material from which the olive is made. I have seen trees 
which were able to and did bear fifteen gallons of fine fruit, 
while fifty feet from them there were other olive trees, of the 
same size and age, and which bloomed quite as profusely, and 
in which every physical and natural condition was the same, 
that did not produce fifteen quarts, I might say, fifteen pints, 
of olives. Cause, starvation; and I have no doubt, if they 
had had a proper quantity of water, at the proper time, as the 
others had, they would have produced as much fruit as the 
others did. Irrigation without cultivation is quite as unsatis- 
factory in results as no irrigation. I saw an olive orchard 
flooded with water; the land was not cultivated afterward, and 
thus the water was carried off by evaporation, the earth becom- 
ing baked and as hard as adobe bricks; result, in August the 
olives shriveled until they were little larger than the pits 
should have been, almost no pulp, so little in fact that 188 
pounds of fruit were required for a gallon of oil. I do not 
know of any soil that would not produce a good olive if it had 
a sufficient quantity of water. This is a solution of the whole 
question. With facilities for proper irrigation, I would not 
hesitate to plant any ordinary soil with olive trees, and would 
expect as a result as many olives as the tree should bear. 
Nor must it be forgotten that good drainage is quite as 
important as irrigation. They go 'hand in hand.' " 



UNFEUITFULNESS OF THE OLIVE. 



The question of the unproductiveness of the olive tree in cer- 
tain localities is at present agitating the minds of many growers 
throughout the State; several orchards, although old enough 
to bear, not yet having given remunerative returns, and others 

*Hon. Frank A. Kimball, in Report of Third Olive-Growers' Convention 
(1893), p. 29. 



26 STATE BOAKD OP HORTICULTURE. 

that bloom profusely but only setting few fruits, being cited as 
instances. The behavior of the olive in this resp6ct is not new, 
and has been understood for ages and is due to many causes, 
but primarily to the improper management of the tree, imper- 
fect bloom, deficient pollen, the ravages of the black scale, 
propagating from unfruitful sorts, and lastly to weakened 
fruit buds caused by excessive spraying with strong caustic 
and crude oily materials, and fumigating with gases too strong 
for the buds. While spraying and fumigating at times 
become essential for subduing the black scale, to which the tree 
is subject, especially in the coast regions or in localities of 
humid atmospheric conditions, unless used with moderation 
and applied at the proper time they cause the weakening of 
the fruit buds and retard their fruiting power. In my investi- 
gations I have often found olive-growers spraying either at the 
wrong time or with materials that not only injured the buds 
very materially, but had no effect whatever on the insects. 
Such condition of affairs exists everywhere, and the trees are 
treated from one to three times a season. Can it be wondered, 
then, that the trees fail to set their bloom with all these 
hinderances, rather than being encouraged in healthfulness 
looking toward a profitable production? 

Buds weakened by any cause put forth weak peduncles, 
which wither and lose hold before the flowers that are attached 
to them have developed. The flowers also develop unnaturally, 
lacking fertilizing power, and either wither and fall before fer- 
tilization takes place, or never open, thus failing to set fruit. 

Trees grown from seed have a tendency to revert to the 
wild type, or a type entirely distinct, some of which fruit, 
while others seldom do. The character is also changed by 
pollen impulse. 

There are a great many trees distributed among the mis- 
sions throughout the State, that, for natural, unexplained 
causes, have never as yet produced fruit in any quantity, the 
tendency of the trees being to throw their growth to foliage 
instead. Many orchardists seeking stock for propagating pur- 
poses planted cuttings in large numbers from such shy-bearing 
trees, and trees grown therefrom have been distributed indis- 
criminately throughout the State. Such trees have proved a 
great disappointment, for they have not yet produced fruit to 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — UNFRUITFULNESS. 27 

pay for their culture, and no doubt never will, at least their 
parents do not. 

Almost every variety of olive known to the Old World has 
been imported into the State and planted indiscriminately 
before the fruiting qualities were tested or the adaptability 
to our soil and climate shown. Several of these have not yet 
produced fruit in any quantity, while others are very shy 
bearers. Many of these varieties fruit for awhile when the 
trees are young, but on becoming older seem to degenerate and 
cease to bear fruit, the branches dying in the center and the 
energies of the tree being wasted in the production of growth 
rather than of fruit. Some of these varieties are also deficient 
in sexual strength of the bloom, not having the fertilizing 
power essential for the setting of the fruit. For several seasons 
I have observed in orchards, in many portions of the State, 
little clusters of berries about half the size of peas. On opening 
these berries the inside was found to be full of a gumlike 
substance, and without a pit, showing deficiency in pollen 
strength. Other berries, about the same size or larger, with 
pits, being the result of late blooming. In many such trees 
clusters of dried-up blossoms are often found Without any 
visible pollen in the flowers, which had died for want of fertili- 
zation. The behavior in the fruiting of the greater portion 
of the olive varieties so largely introduced has yet to be studied 
and experimented upon. That all varieties, irrespective of the 
climatic and soil conditions of the locations from which 
imported, planted in a locality with conditions entirely dis- 
similar, should be expected to become eminently successful, 
has long ago been proven to be a fallacy. 

With regard to the "Mission" olive, its non-bearing behavior 
is easily understood. It requires, above all things, to be kept 
in as clean and thrifty condition as possible. The black scale 
must be freed from it, and the trees must be properly fertilized 
and cultivated. Once the tree becomes infested with the black 
scale the smut produced from the excrement of this insect will 
cover the breathing functions of both leaf and branch, and the 
tendency of the tree will then be to leaf growth instead of to 
fruit. The tree, however, may bloom profusely, but, being 
sensitive to the fungus, the stems to which the flowers are 
attached become weakened, lose hold, wither, and drop before 
fertilization takes place. These natural conditions no doubt 



28 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

also apply with equal force to other varieties. Pruning to 
encourage the formation of fruit-bearing wood also becomes 
very essential. 

Aside from the causes already mentioned, are the following 
reasons why the olive fails to produce a crop in paying quan- 
tities: 

1. Unsuitable soil selection, not naturally well drained, hav- 
ing a strata of "hardpan" or clayey, uncongenial conditions 
for roots too close to the surface. Soil not of ample richness, 
of too high or too low altitude. 

2. Planting on sites too much exposed, without giving the 
trees protection by planting others to serve as windbreaks, etc. 

3. The existence of a frost line. Frost during blooming 
period is very detrimental to the setting of the fruit, and 
in the fall and early winter to the fruit, especially during its 
tender period or first stages of ripening. 

4. Planting varieties of indiscriminate selection, without 
regard to locality, adaptability, or the suitableness of stocks 
used, etc. 

5. Planting trees too deep or too shallow, which everywhere 
has proved a grave mistake. 

6. Planting too close. Trees, after becoming large, require 
abundance of soil of which there is not enough for the roots of 
all. Also, the shade from adjoining trees is very detrimental. 

7. Lack of fertilizers — failing to supply the elements of 
nutrition needed to secure healthy growth of trees, that the 
particular soil may lack, whether in a virgin state or after the 
growth of trees has exhausted same. 

8. Want of proper pruning, such as the trees may need 
under varying conditions, especially to encourage fruit-bearing 
wood. 

9. Injudicious cultivation, such as cutting the fibrous roots 
just before a dry spell, or during blooming time. 

10. AVant of cultivation, allowing the weeds to grow, when 
the tree roots should have the soil to themselves, especially in 
dry weather, or allowing the soil to become dry after plowing, 
without breaking up the clods and pulverizing the ground. 

11. Endeavoring to get two or more crops out of the same 
ground by growing other plants between and more or less close 
to the trees, which is detrimental to both. 

12. Allowing the trees to become infested with the black 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — TRANSPLANTING. 29 

scale, the fungus produced by the excrement of which clogs up 
the breathing functions of the tree and retards the growth ot^ 
both tree and fruit. 



TRANSPLANTIlsrG. 



Olive trees are transplanted from the nursery to orchard 
form in the spring of the year, varying from February to 
April, according to the climatic conditions of the locality. 
There are three methods pursued in preparing the trees. One 
is to take up the tree with the utmost care, trimming all the 
shoots along the body of the tree to within four or six inches of 
their base. The tree puts forth new shoots at the apex of those 
cut back, which in time form a symmetrical top. Another 
method is to cut the main stock to within twelve or fourteen 
inches of the ground, so that the tree becomes low-trained in 
the form of a bush. The third method consists of shaping the 
tree in the nursery and transplanting it without removing any 
of the foliage. It is taken up with earth adhering to the roots 
and is not allowed to grow too large (in the nursery) as the 
larger the tree the more difficult the operation. 

* •' In transplanting olive trees from the nursery to the 
orchard the roots and tops should be protected as much as 
possible from the sun and wind. The work should not be 
done when a dry wind is prevailing. The trees should be 
taken up in as dormant a condition as possible. They are 
usually in this state in January and February. If it is not 
convenient to plant them then, they may be taken up before 
they commence to grow and heeled-in and set out later in the 
season. At the time of planting, the soil should be settled 
around the roots with water. The olive tree is very tenacious 
of life, and may be successfully transplanted at one year of age 
up to the size of large bearing trees, this having been done 
often. Although most varieties are apt to grow unshapely in 
the nursery, they become symmetrical after being out in the 
orchard two or three years. As some of the roots are cut off 
in digging, some of the branches should be removed at the time 

*John S. Calkins, of Pomona. 



30 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

of planting; after this but little pruning will be necessary till 
they begin to bear." 

*"In planting an olive orchard, select two or more varieties 
ripening at different times, which will give more time to 
harvest and handle the crop. Planters will find it to their 
advantage to plant two-year-old trees, or older; the roots of 
the one-year-old trees are too tender and immature to transplant 
without danger of losing a large percentage of the trees. The 
utmost care should be observed, from the time the trees are taken 
from the nursery until they are planted in the orchard, to keep 
the roots protected from the sunlight and air; never allowing 
the roots to become dry in transplanting. Because the olive is 
called a very hardy tree, many planters are careless in trans- 
planting, thereby losing many trees which could have been saved 
with little care. Too often the nurseryman is censured for the 
loss. The roots of the olive tree are very sensitive and tender, 
more so than of any other tree I have ever handled; still, with 
a very little trouble it can be moved with as little loss as 
other fruit trees. Often, after planting, the tree will lose all 
its leaves and remain dormant until the following year; if the 
bark remains green it will come out all right and do well. 
The olive is a slow tree to start, but once started it makes a 
vigorous growth. If part of the top shows signs of withering 
and dying, it should be cut off, to prevent the sour sap from 
poisoning the balance of the tree. I have kept olive trees 
heeled-in for eight and ten weeks, losing very few trees, but this 
should be done only to hold the trees dormant for late planting. 
The less handling they can have and the sooner they can be 
planted after taking from the nursery, ,the less danger there is 
from the roots becoming dry, which always occasions loss; but 
if properly packed they can be safely shipped long distances. 
The trees should be severely pruned when transplanted. My 
plan is to cut the main stalk back from a third to a half, 
according to the height of the tree, and to cut all branches back 
to three inches, and to plant the tree from six to twelve inches 
deeper than it was set in the nursery. The most successful 
olive men plant deep. Deep planting would prove disastrous 
to fruit trees, but the orchardist will not find it so with the 
olive, provided he keeps the ground well loosened about the 
body of the tree. With the short pruning and deep planting, 

*F. M. Hunt, of Redlands. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — TRANSPLANTING. ' 31 

I know many will say there is not much left for show, which is 
all very true, but I can assure you the result will prove very 
satisfactory; the per cent of loss will be much less, and at the 
end of two years they will be far ahead of trees planted shal- 
low with full tops and branches. By this plan I have taken 
olive trees from the nursery and planted them as late in the 
season as May, with splendid success. But I would advise 
planting as early in the season as possible, and when the trees 
are dormant, January and February being the two best months. 
By planting early we have the benefit of the winter rains to 
settle the soil about the roots; settling the soil about the roots 
with water is better than tramping." 

*"In planting a young tree it is better not to disturb any 
growing limbs or branches, because cutting them when the 
tree is young interferes with the roots, and the orchardist will 
understand that if he cuts away the limbs and destroys the 
leaves he is destroying the breathing apparatus of the roots. 
An untrimmed olive tree when small and commencing to root 
will grow four times as fast without pruning than if pruned. 
The more top it has the faster it will grow, for it feeds largely 
from the leaves— from moisture. After the second year, 
though, it must be pruned. Those who cultivate the young 
tree up to five and a half or six feet must, of course, pinch off 
all the branches that are making wood rapidly, so as to force 
the strength into one main trunk. When lateral limbs branch 
out pinch them off at the end and stop the growth, but all small 
branches should be left alone as much as possible until the tree 
gets eight or ten feet high, and then commence cutting them 
off. Those who want to prune low should start the trees out 
from four to six inches from the ground and form four or five 
main branches instead of one. I am not in favor of low pruning 
of the olive in the coast counties. We have no fear of the 
sunlight burning the bark. In ten years high pruning will 
give twice as much tree as low pruning. It grows up to a bush 
more than a tree, and these shoots vie with each other to get 
up to sunlight. If the planter pinches them off up to four or 
five feet he can form a much better tree." 



■ Hon. Ellwood Cooper, of Santa Barbara. 



32 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTUEE. 

PRUNING. 



There are in vogue in this State various systems of pruning 
the olive, each differing materially as to the variety and as to 
the shajDe of the tree, but all with the one object in view, i. e., the 
increase of growth and production. Each system requires study, 
and it depends a great deal upon circumstances. After the for- 
mation of the tree, the chief thing to consider is that the fruit is 
borne only on two-year-old branches, which, when they have 
once produced fruit, never do so again. Trees are liable to 
suffer by injudicious pruning of fruit-bearing branches or by 
excessive lopping. Therefore, pruning must consist in cutting 
away the superfluous and useless growth and dead wood to 
give light and air and make room for fresh and fruitful twigs 
and shoots. 

FORMS OF TREE PRUNING. 

Natural Habit. — This form consists of leaving the tree to 
take its natural form, and to obtain well-balanced trees their 
formation begins at planting. The trees are not shorn of their 
top, but it is allowed to grow and become the leader, which 
with the side or lateral branches soon form a symmetrical tree. 
The trees are carefully thinned. Branches on the outside 
extending beyond the symmetry of the main foliage are 
pinched back during the growing period. Limbs too heavily 
weighted with fruit are either propped with poles or tied to the 
main branches to prevent them from breaking. 

The olive has a tendency to grow downward, that is, the 
lower and side branches droop, protecting its trunk from sun- 
burn and the soil beneath from drying out. These may be 
removed every year, but the trees continue to throw out growth 
from the side and lower branches every year, which in a short 
period of time droop, seemingly knowing the tree's require- 
ments. It is nature's system and cannot be changed by man. 

Before the introduction of parasitical and predaceous insects, 
Hon. EUwood Cooper wrote: "In the pruning during the first 
years, have only the one object in view, that is, to force all the 
woody growth into one main trunk. This being done the tree 
will naturally form a beautiful shape. The cultivator must 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE. 



PLATE V. 







OLIVE TREE PRUNED BY THE SYSTEM ADOPTED BY HON. ELLWOOD 

COOPER, AT ELWOOD, NEAR SANTA BARBARA. 

3oc ■ 33 



34 



STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 



not look at the tree of to-day or to-morrow, but at the tree of ten 
years hence. All branches to the height of five to five and a 
half feet should be removed, so as to admit of close cultivating 
by horses. Trees planted at the distance of twenty feet and 
well kept, will in ten years touch each other. When this con- 
dition is reached they will be in full bearing and therefore will 
require constant pruning or cutting back. It is much easier 
and less expensive to gather the fruit from small trees; besides, 
if the pruning is intelligently done it will improve the fruit 
and secure a greater quantity to the acre than can be produced 
under any other conditions." 




Olive orchard scene, showing Mr. Cooper's present method of priming. 

Circumstances often revolutionize ideas and change methods; 
he now says: * '' I have changed my method of pruning within 
the past two or three years; formerly I pruned very heavily. 
The olive tree grows so rapidly on my place that if I did not 
prune heavily I would have no tree; but since the State Board 
of Horticulture and the fruit men of California have interested 
themselves in parasitic insects, and have sent Professor Koebele 
on the two voyages to Australia to look for parasitic insects to 
keep the black scale in check, I find the pruning will have to 
undergo a very great change. In order to insure the rapid 

*Hon. Ellwood Cooper, Report of Third Olive-Growers' Convention (1893), 
pp. 30-31. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — PRUNING. 35 

increase of these ladybirds which have been imported from Aus- 
tralia, and which we hope will do the work, it will be necessary 
to have a large amount of brush near the ground, and the 
question is which is better, to promote the increase of the lady- 
birds that are going to keep the black scale in check, or scientific 
pruning of the trees? I cut the top of the tree back, but I am 
now cultivating brush, I want it to hang down on the ground 
so as to absolutely preserve the eggs that are laid by the lady- 
birds, and also to protect the early stages of the larvse. This 
is necessary. If there are many birds they pick the lady- 
birds and carry them off, and that will defeat the object; so 
that now I am not pruning an olive tree as it should be pruned, 
but am pruning it to preserve the parasitic insects that will 
keep the tree clean. I hope to avoid the expense of spraying.* 
If this can be accomplished, certainly we can produce olive oil 
at least one third less, or perhaps at fifty per cent of the present 
cost. The great trouble with me has been with kerosene oil — 
ordering it by the carloads from Cleveland, Ohio, and washing, 
washing, continually. It is very expensive, and so long as 
the present method of spraying trees is kept up, as a matter of 
course the more pruning, the more sunlight, the more air the 
tree is given the easier it is to keep the black scale in check 
and secure a crop. But with the parasitic insect, with the dif- 
ferent kinds of ladybirds, this brush is wanted near the ground 
to protect them — not pruning olive trees, but cultivating lady- 
birds. I have changed my method." 

Question: "Do you cut the trees back?" 

"Yes, every year." 

Question: "At what time do you cut them?" 

"I cut them all the time." 

Question: "How high do you keep your trees generally?" 

"The trees that were pruned formerly were not cut back; 
they are thirty feet high." 

Question: " How high would you keep them ?" 

"I had hoped to kee}) them at twenty feet, but doubt whether 
it can be done. I commence when they are not more than ten 
feet and clip off; always a little higher each time." 

Question: "Does this cause them to grow like a willow?" 

"The Mission is a very symmetrical tree. It grows into a 

*Since then the ladybird Rhizohius ventralis has practically exterminated 
the black scale in his orchards. 



36 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

main stem with lateral branches, and also with branches 
diagonal to the main stem, and it is very easy to prune to 
make a symmetrical tree. But as I said before, I am cultivating 
the lateral branches to hang down on the ground as a harbor 
for ladybirds." 

Question: "Do you recommend the thinning out of the 
brush?" 

" Yes. The tendency of the Mission olive on my place is to 
grow very rapidly, and when limbs are full of fruit bend 
•downward, and you will find that one of the things you have 
to avoid is not to allow these limbs to bear down." 

Question: "Do you sucker your trees?" 

" Always, except when very young. When we first plant 
the tree we are very careful not to break anything off, because 
the leaves of the tree are the lungs, and if you keep cutting 
all the time before the tree is properly rooted it will not make 
roots. The more brush and leaves you have, the more rapidly 
will the roots grow, until the second year; then we begin to cut 
away." 

Question: "With trees three, five, or six years old?" 

"About twice a year we sucker our trees." 

Question: "In planting an olive tree do you cut it back very 
heavily?" 

"Cut it all away to the cane. In no case do I allow it more 
than four or five feet of height. Make it exactly like a walking 
stick — no leaves or branches." 

Method Applicable to the San Joaquin Valley.* — "The 
trees before leaving the nursery should have all the lateral 
branches shortened in from one to two inches and the top 
should be cut back, as this prevents the evaporation of sap 
through the foliage, and there is consequently very little lost in 
transplanting. The best time to transplant olives is when 
they are in the growing condition, from March 1st to May 1st, 
as they then suffer but a very slight setback, will thrive much 
better, and the percentage of loss will be much less than if 
taken up in the dormant state. After planting, the trees 
should be cut back to within sixteen or twenty inches from the 
ground, or wherever it is desired that the head shall be formed, 
and in the first year all growth starting close to the ground or 
on the body of the tree should be allowed to remain, as it 

*George C. Roeding, before Fresno Farmers' Club, 1897. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — PRUNING, 37 

})revents the stem from sunburning and promotes root growth. 
The following year all this growth should be removed, except 
four or five branches properly distributed at the point where 
the head is to be formed, and these should be shortened in to 
within six or eight inches of the body of the tree. The year 
after, these branches, in turn, should be shortened in at least 
one half, and should any new branches have started from the 
main body they should be removed. This shortening-in 
method will cause the stem and body of the tree to become 
strong and stocky, so that when the tree is old enough to bear 
fruit it will not break down or require support to prevent the 
branches from breaking off. The natural tendency of nearly 
all the olives is to shoot upward, like a poplar, and unless this 
method of shortening-in is carefully followed every year, it is 
only a question of a short time when all the fruit will be 
on the top of the tree. It must be borne in mind that pruning 
is just as essential to the olive as to the peach or pear, for the 
shortening-in of the branches promotes young growth through- 
out the entire tree, and the fruit is evenly distributed and is 
not all on the top. If not pruned, an olive will come into 
bearing in three years in this valley, but the vitality of the tree 
will be greatly impaired and when old enough to produce a 
full crop it will fail to do so." 

Vase or Goblet Form. — In districts along the coast and in 
the bay counties, where fogs and cool atmospheric conditions 
prevail, especially during 
ripening time, the "vase" 
or "goblet" form of prun- 
ing the olive is becoming 
more popular every year. 
The position of an olive 
grove in relation to the 
sun appears to be of great 
importance, for growers 
have experienced that by 
pruning the olive in this 
form, opening the top of 
the tree thoroughly to the 
sun, the fruit matures 
more evenlv and earlier. 

. ' Tree pruned by the vase or goblet form in 

The tree is well hollowed orchard of E. E. Goodrich, Santa Clara. 





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38 



STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 



out to admit air and light, but with careful study as to wood 
required for crops of the two following years. The lower and 
drooping branches are allowed to grow downward, even if they 
touch the ground, for these branches are the most fruitful, and 
more easily reached during harvest time, thereby facilitating 
gathering. 



GEAFTING AND BUDDING. 



The olive is grafted and budded very successfully, during 
the different periods of growth. The purpose and action of the 
graft and bud are: 

(a) To multiply the varieties 
selected on trees already consti- 
tuted or on vigorous subjects; 

( ft ) To further the wild or semi- 
wild stocks; 

(c) To excite the development 
of the branches, blossoms, and 
fruits on the parts of the plant 
lacking them ; 

{d) To reinvigorate ailing trees 
by grafting or budding them with 
others of greater fertility, and to 
make others more resistant to 
frosts by grafting them with 
hardier sorts. 

Budding or grafting exercises 
an influence in several ways: 
On the stature and durability 
of the tree, on its fruitfulness, 
on the size and flavor of its fruits, 
and on the precocity of fructification. It also modifies its 
development and sometimes also its duration, making it larger 
or smaller, long or short lived. 




i\e tree grafted over, grafts 
growing. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — GRAFTING AND BUDDING. 39 

GRAFTING THE OLIVE. 

Cleft Graft. — Large limbs are cut horizontally and split 
from side to side to insert the cions. The common practice 
has been to split the limb down the center, but of late it has 
been found that the grafts take better when the cleft is made to 
one side. When limbs split too far, it leaves the grafts in a 
loosened condition above. 

The method has been improved upon by making the cleft to 
one side, or on both sides, of the central pith of the limb, as 
shown in the accompanying cut. In this method the grafts 
are held more firmly than in the former. It has the advan- 
tage also that more than two grafts can be inserted in the 
limb. This is quite important, because when a greater number 
are inserted with the same amount of labor, the chances for 





Cleft grafts inserted in the center Cleft grafts inserted on both sides 

of a large limb, ready to be tied of the central pith of the limb, 

and waxed. 

success are better, and insures a more uniform growth of 
grafts. After the grafts have put forth growth all are removed 
except one, the strongest, which now assumes the functions of 
the top. 

Branches of medium size are cut off obliquely, when with a 
steady hand a vertical cleft is made, the slit being nearly one 
third less in length than that of the wedge or cion. The cion 
is next inserted from the top, the cleft being extended with 
the knife until the wedge of the cion is wholly inserted. It is 
then bound with strips of cloth, or tied with heavy budding 
twine, and waxed over. The cleft throughout the whole 
diameter of the stock is made with a chisel specially made for 
grafting. When the cleft is two-thirds open the chisel is 



40 



STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 



leaned against one side to keep the slit half closed and open it 
sufficiently to insert the cions one after the other. It is always 
best to graft the branches intended to form the tree, leaving all 
the side branches undisturbed, as they force the sap into those 
cut off and holding the grafts. When the grafts have become 
strong and able to perform the functions of the top, these side 
branches are removed. 





Cleft graft and slock, prepared ready 
for iuseriion. 



Cleft graft inserted in stock, ready 
to be tied and waxed. 



Cleft Graft, for Small Stocks.— In this method of graft- 
ing the cleft is not made in the center. The cleft is made 
from either side, as shown in accompanying figures. The cion 
is cut from both sides, to be large at the surface side and thin 
at the inner; then it is inserted into the cleft in the stock. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — GRAFTING AND BUDDING. 41 

The cion is driven down as far as it will go, and is made to fit 
exactly (both barks to be even) on the surface side; the other 
side does not matter, as the union of the cion and stock is on the 
surface side. In time both sides heal over. After the cion is 
inserted it must be tied and waxed, and if the operation is per- 
formed low it must be covered up with earth, leaving as little 
of the cion exposed as possible. The entire leaves on the cions 
must not be cut ofl"; at least one third of the leaf must be left, 
to prevent them from drying before they have time to unite 
with the stock. Also, the entire leaf must not be allowed to 
remain on the cion; the trimming of the same prevents it from 
carrying off too rapidly the fluids by evaporation. In this 
method great care must be exercised in making the cleft. A 
cleft made in the center of the stock generally causes the stock 
to split too far at the time the cion is inserted, and it is difficult 
to get a perfect fit. The more the cion is pushed down into the 
cleft the more the stock will split; this often results in the loss 
of the entire tree. 

The best time to graft the olive is when the trees commence 
to put forth new growth in the spring, through the summer 
months, and late in the fall when they are commencing to 
relax in growth. 

Crown Grafting. — Crown grafting is practiced, from Feb- 
ruary to April, according to locality, when the trees are in sap 
and the bark can be easily detached. The stocks must be 
cleanly cut off thirty days before. When the time of grafting 
has come the wounds are revived with the pruning knife and 
the dry portion is taken off. This mode of grafting is suitable 
for trees of average and of large size; for the latter it is even 
necessary, because it permits the insertion of several cions in 
proportion to the vigor of the stock itself. The cion is made 
about two to four inches in length. The higher portion has 
two or three buds, and the cut of the lower end is made 
obliquely, like a flattened wedge. The wedge must begin in 
front of a bud, starting from the medular sheath and ending 
by continually thinning in an acute form. Being thus deprived 
of the pith, it adheres better to the stock; it must have, there- 
fore, but little thickness. The insertion is made on top of the 
stock, in a cut between the bark and the wood. To facilitate 
the entering of the cion its point is either sharpened or 



42 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

moistened when inserted into the stock. When several cions 
are to be inserted into large branches they must be placed a 
good distance apart. The insertion being made, the parts are 
wrapped with cloth or twine. Then grafting wax is spread 
on the wounds, on the cuts and on the bark corresponding 
with the inserted cions, so as to prevent laceration. 

By making the crown grafting near the ground as much as 
possible, both the cion and the stock can be covered with earth 
as far as the higher buds. In this manner, the success is more 
certain and the development more prompt, as the drying up of 
the parts is prevented and the development of roots from the 
incisions facilitated. 

When only one cion is to be inserted into the plant, the suc- 
cess of the grafting is more certain if the stocks are cut off 
obliquely and the corresponding end of the branch hewed to a 
wedge, beginning with a small tongue at an acute angle. This 
tongue is necessary to make an exact joint with the oblique 
surface of the stock. 

Indoor Grafting. — This method, as illustrated in figures on 
page 43, is practiced mostly indoor, in the greenhouse or under 
frames. The stock is not entirely cut off", as shown in the 
illustration, but about half of the foliage is removed. The 
operation is performed by cutting into the stock, simply press- 
ing the knife slightly, so that when the cut above is made it 
will form at the lower part a cut in the shape of a V- This 
cut is made directly over a bud (a leaf) on the stock. This 
has the tendency of drawing to the graft nutritious sap, 
which keeps it alive, and aids it in uniting with the stock. 
The graft is then trimmed, leaving to it about one third of the 
leaves, as shown in the illustration, and inserted in the 
stock. Care must be taken that both barks fit exactly on one 
side; the other side does not matter, as it heals over in time. 
The graft may be waxed, if the operator so desires, but it is 
immaterial, unless under low heat or no heat at all. After 
the graft has started, the stock above the bud is cut back, when 
the tree may be removed to the open air or planted in nursery. 

Grafting in Localities of Dry Atmospheric Conditions.*— 

"From my experience in grafting olives, in the Fresno district, 
I consider February the best month, as I have experimented 
* George C. Roeding, of Fresno. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — GRAFTING AND BUDDING. 



43 



from that month on up to the first of May, and have met with 
the best success with the grafts put in in the month above 
stated. The cions should be cut when the grafting is to be 
done, and nothing smaller than a cion the size of a lead pencil 
should be used. In grafting over large trees we use the cleft 




Prepared cion and stock of Indoor gra(t, showing Cion of indoor graft in- 
an indoor graft. growth. serted in stock ready 

to be tied. 



graft. Great care should be taken in wnaxing, and, in addition 
to the liquid wax, which should be carefully spread over the 
top of the branch which has been worked, and around the side 
where the split has been made, thin cloth should be wrapped 
carefully around the top, as well as around the branch where 



44 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

the split has been made, and this should also be waxed over. 
The object in view in doing this is to take every precaution to 
keep the air out. One very important point that should be 
observed in grafting over old trees is not to cut off all the 
branches of the tree, but leave one or two to carry off the sap, 
which must find an outlet. The branch or branches which 
remain should not be removed entirely the next year, but 
should gradually be cut back and should only be cut away 
after the grafts have attained some size, and it will probably 
take at least two years before it will be perfectly safe to remove 
all that remains of the original tree. In some localities, espe- 
cially in the coast counties, I have seen the entire tops of old 
olive trees cut away and grafted, and the trees live; and here 
I have seen the same experiment tried, and, with very few 
exceptions, the trees so handled died. The cause of this is 
probably to be attributed to the difference in climatic conditions 
in the two localities. I believe, however, that it is always 
better in grafting over trees, whether they are deciduous or 
evergreen, to allow at least one branch of the original tree to 
remain until the grafts have attained such a size as to take the 
place, to a certain extent, of the original top, Avhich has been 
removed. There is no question in my mind that in removing 
an entire top of a tree, so as to prevent the circulation of the 
sap, it is a terrible shock to it, and if the tree does finally 
recover it takes several vears to do so." 



BUDDING THE OLIVE. 

Budding olive trees by the ordinary methods practiced. on 
fruit trees is somewhat difficult. The buds being small and 
the bark thin, great care is necessary in order to insure suc- 
cess. The methods herein described, while somewhat new in 
use, have given the best results. 

Plate, or Eye, Bud.— This is one of the simplest of all 
methods and is employed on large as well as small trees. The 
operation is performed in the spring and through the summer, 
or in the fall. Buds put in in the spring start early; those in 
the fall are left to lie dormant through the winter. An incision 
is made on the stock, thus | |, and the flap drawn down. The 
bud is then cut from the cion to be a trifle smaller than the 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE— GRAFTING AND BUDDING. 45 





Plate bud in place, 
side view. 



space cut in the stock ; it is then inserted, as shown in the 
figure. The flap is then turned up, covering the bud entirely, 
and tied tightly with soft cotton twine. The bud consists of 
only an eye and the bark which sur- 
rounds it. At every leaf there is a 
bud, which on being cut from the 
stem very easily separates from the 
wood. At three weeks or so the 
strings are removed. The top of the 
tree is then cut off gradually to induce 
the bud to start, or the tree may be 
girdled about an inch or two above piate bud, 
the bud. When the bud has made a 
good start, and has become strong, the entire top of the tree is 
cut away a foot or so above the bud, and the bud tied to the 
stock. As soon as the bud has assumed the functions of the 
top, and no longer needs support, the remaining portion of the 
top is cut away and the cut made is waxed over. 

Ordinary Plate Bud.— This method does not differ mate- 
rially from the shield method hereinafter described, or methods 

practiced on other trees, as can best 
be judged by the accompanying illus- 
tration. The incision in the stock is 
made in the regular way. The bud is 
cut from the limb, the leaf having 
been previously trimmed off, leaving 
about half an inch of the stem at- 
tached to the bud for protection of 
the eye in handling. It is 

A. Incision in the stock. then tied. 

B. Plate bud. 

C. Bud inserted and tied. -r^, i , ..^, -« 

Double Flap Bud.— This 

method is identical with the plate bud, except that the 

incision in the stock is made in the form of an H- The 

flaps are drawn both ways, up and down, from the 

center incision; the bud is then inserted, as shown 

in the figure, and tied. These flaps protect both ends 

of the bud. In this method buds having a large bulge °bud jf ^ 

at the leaf part can be used. place. 

Ring Budding. — The cion for ring budding must have one 
or more buds, and be at least two and one fourth inches in 





46 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

length. Having made a vertical incision in it with the grafting 
knife, the bud is carefully detached with the knife from the 
underlying alburnum, and stuck into the stock, which has been 
deprived of an equal tube of bark. In making the insertion 
care must be taken that the bud of the ring be close below a bud 
of the stock, in order that the latter may draw the sap toward 
the cion, thus insuring its development. Should the cion be of 
greater diameter than the stock, it must be reduced in size 
accordingly; if, on the contrary, a portion of the stock remains 
uncovered after the application of the graft, a piece of bark 
may be added to fill the empty space. Lastly, the ligature 
is made. 

Ring Budding with Cortical Ribbons. — In ring budding 
with cortical ribbons, the cion is prepared as in the preceding 
case, but the bark of the stock is cut into ribbons, folded down- 
ward. The ring being applied, the cortical ribbons are drawn 
up over it and the whole kept in place by a proper ligature. 

Shield Budding. — Shield budding can be practiced from 
March to September. If made in summer the shield is 
taken from a medium-sized branch of the year's growth; if 
made in spring, from a branch of the preceding year. The 
buds must be well formed and unexpanded, and the branch in 
sap so that the bark may be removed with the finger. The 
maturation of the object-bearing branch is recognized by the 
dark color of the epidermis, by the formation of the terminal 
bud, by the elasticity of the tissues under the pressure of the 
fingers. A branch advanced in maturation is preferable to one 
still herbaceous; the early or too forward branches and those 
too floriferous are bad object-bearers. 

The eyes situated in the middle of the branch are to be pre- 
ferred for grafts; those near the basis and on the top are often 
defective, because they are either tender or herbaceous, or too 
disposed to bear fruits. 

In regard to the stocks they must be in sap to receive the 
cion, consequently the bark must be easily removable. The 
stocks must be carefully trimmed of all growth some time 
before, in order that the course of the humors may not be 
abruptly arrested at the moment of grafting and the success 
hazarded. 

To extract the shield from the branch two transversal 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — GRAFTING AND BUDDING, 47 

incisions are made with the grafting knife above and under 
the bud to be removed, one from one half to three fourths of an 
inch above the bud, the other about the same below. The 
knife blade is inserted as far as the sap wood (alburnum), and 
the shield extracted with a ligneous fragment, in which is the 
basis of the bud. The alburnum adhering to the extremities 
of the shield may be skillfully removed if the stocks are not 
much in sap. The shield can also be extracted by making 
three incisions in the bark of the branch in the form of a tri- 
angle; that is, one transversely over the bud and two in the form 
of a V> starting from and terminating under it in an acute angle. 

Before detaching the shield, two incisions in the form of a T 
are made in the bark of the stock, dilating the borders of the 
wound with the grafting knife; then, holding it by the pedicel, 
the shield is detached and with the aid of the knife inserted 
through the slits, pressing it quickly with the fingers at the 
same time, so that it will fit exactly the alburnum of the stock 
and be covered with its bark, the bud excepted. This being 
done the ligature is made from above downward, in order to 
prevent the displacing of the shield. 

There are cases when the saj) of the stock is abundant and 
injures the graft. This may be prevented by making the 
incisions in the stock in the form of _[ instead of J. The 
shield is cut square at the lower end and pointed at the top, 
leaving the bud, however, in its nat- 
ural position. The shield having 
been inserted through the transverse 
cut of the incision, that is to say 
from below upward, the ligature is 
made from the lower part of the 
wound upward, in order that the 
shield may not be displaced from its 
position. 

Twig Bud. — This is one of the 
simplest methods employed on the 

. i ,< Twig bud insert- The same, tied— 

olive, but requires more care and ed in stock- reduced. 
skill. It has an advantage over all reduced, 
other methods, because the buds never fail to start after they 
take hold, and again, there are no blind buds, many of which 
never start and which are greatly encountered in all other 




48 



STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 



methods of budding. In this method limbs having numerous 
twigs, from half an inch to two inches long, are used. Each 
twig is utilized for budding. The twigs are cut deep into the 
wood, to give the bud sufficient bark. The greater part of the 
wood in the bud is then carefully removed with the end of the 
budding knife as shown in the figure. The buds are then 
inserted and tied in the regular way. The leaves are partly 




Twig buds, showing how they are trimmed and removed 
from the branch. The cue on the right shows a twig bud pre- 
pared for insertion, the wood in it having been gouged out. 

trimmed off, leaving at least a half inch of the leaf on the bud 
to prevent the bud from drying. This method can be performed 
at any time of the year when the sap flows freely. Best results 
are, however, obtained early in the spring of the year, as the 
operation can be performed to a much better advantage, the 
buds growing and becoming strong in one season. 



CALIFOENIA OLIVE CULTURE — VARIETIES. 49 

VARIETIES. 



From a single species there issued, through fecundation, so 
many varieties of the olive that now their number can hardly 
be reckoned and it would require a long study to describe them. 
Such a task would be a most difficult one, inasmuch as a great 
many of these varieties, through modifications to which they 
are subject by different conditions of soil and climate and 
cultivation or by changed locality, possess peculiar characters 
and habits which might be observed and recognized only 
through experience. 

In many European olive regions it has been observed that 
many varieties have not maintained themselves permanently, 
and also many have been introduced under the local names by 
which they are known in the districts from whence imported, 
and on fruiting were found to be simply a multiplication of 
the same under different names. 

In selecting varieties of olives the most important question is 
a knowledge of the characters of the tree, the stature, the pre- 
cocity, the fruitfulness, the oiliness of the fruit, and adapta- 
bility to the location where it is to be planted. 

1. The degree of resistance of the fruit to cold and heat, as 
to whether the tree can thrive in unprotected and non-temperate 
places, in unpropitious localities, or places having the most 
favorable exposures and well protected. 

2. The bearing of erect and robust or thin branches, numer- 
ous or sparingly, suggests the form the trees will have, and 
the method of pruning to adopt to make them fruitful. 

3. Large standard trees, or dwarfs or semi- dwarfs, indicate 
the area that they will eventually occupy and the proper 
distance to plant. 

4. The degree of precocity in blooming and maturing of the 
fruit should be known in valuing the fruitfulness of any variety. 

5. The percentage of oil that olives of a given weight will 
produce. 

6. Varieties that make a good pickle ripe, or a good quality 

of oil. 

7. Varieties that make a good pickle green, or oil when ripe. 

4oc 



50 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

Those who interest themselves enough to make the above 
research can but feel safe in the outcome of their orchards, and 
need not be asking " What is the best olive? " a question which, 
to embody all the essential qualities in one variety, cannot be 
answered. 

THE "MISSION" OLIVE. 

Although innumerable olive varieties have been introduced 
from almost every locality in the world where the olive grows, no 
variety has as yet given such universal satisfaction as the 
" Mission," and it stands to-day preeminent as the most popular 
and most profitable variety grown. It has qualities found in 
no other variety, and is therefore given first place on the list. 

Mission, so called, from its first having been grown at the 
missions and supposed to have been introduced at their advent. 
It is a remarkable variety and fit for either oil or pickles. 
There are various types of this so-called " Mission " olive, but 
the one most universally grown is easily distinguished, being 
characteristically marked, from all other types and varieties. 
It is a tree of great longevity, of extraordinarily large dimen- 
sions, of thrifty growth, erect, hardy, and well adapted to our 
climate. It thrives and does well in almost every part of the 
State. It grows in almost any kind of soil, if well drained. 
Bark grayish, branches slightly drooping; leaf lanceolate, 
upper face deep green, smooth, under face greenish ashy white. 
Fruit elongated, distributed irregularly, isolated or grouped in 
twos, threes, and clusters, red at first, but deep purple-black 
when ripe; it carries on its surface numerous white specks, 
most of which disappear gradually on ripening. Ripens late 
and unevenly, which is its great drawback, especially in sec- 
tions where the soil gets very loose after an early rain and is 
visited by early frosts. Many, however, prefer it on account of 
its late ripening, as the picking is done in winter after all 
fruits are gathered, and the growers are independent of high- 
priced labor. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE. 



PLATE VI. 




FRUITING BRANCH OF "MISSION" OLIVE. (Reduced.) 



52 



STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 



INTRODUCED VARIETIES. 

The following varieties have been introduced into the State 
and some have been planted to a considerable extent. Those 
so far as known to the writer are described briefly, with 
comments: 

WILD TYPE — DWARF TREES. 

Tree semi-dwarf, very showy, small branches, robust and 
erect. Fruit of varying size, with very little flesh; valuable 
for stocks. 

SEMI-WILD TYPE — MEDIUM TREES. 

Redding Picholine. — The first olive trees imported to this 
State was in 1872, by the late B. B. Redding, from France. 

. ; These were of the 
Picholine variety. 
On the voyage the 
tops of the trees 
froze down below 
the graft. They were 
planted in two lots 
in Sacramento, and 
most of them grew. 
The shoots that came 
up were all from 
below the graft, and 
were widely dis- 
tributed throughout 
the State for propa- 
gating purposes, un- 
der the impression 
that it was the true 
Picholine. These 
produced, instead of 
a large berry, which 
the Picholine is, a 
small olive having 
characteristics of the 
wild species. In 1888 
I named it as above, to distinguish it from the true Picholine, 
a variety which it does not resemble, in either tree or fruit. 



';.'4^&;:> 




Wild Olive. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — VARIETIES. 53 

The tree is of small dimensions. The fruit is quite small, and 
of a deep blue-black color. It makes a fair oil, but not of high 
grade. The oil congeals at a moderately low temperature. It 
is best suited as a stock to bud and graft upon. 

CULTIVATED VARIETIES. 

Amellau. — ;Tree of medium size, strong and regular bearer. 
Fruit large, oval, pickled green. Ripens early. 

Ascolano. — The white olive of Ascoli. Valuable for pickling 
green. 

Atro-rubens. — A vigorous, tall spreading tree. Fruit below 
medium size, first mottled with red, and deep black when ripe. 
Skin thin, pulp colored a vinous red. Makes excellent oil, 
but unfit for pickles. Very sensitive to cold. 

Atro-violacea. — Tree vigorous grower and prolific, of a weeping 
habit. Fruit medium size, deep blue-black. The fruit makes 
oil of high grade, and also good pickles, either ripe or green. 
This is the only olive so far known in the State that dries 
well, the bitter principle entirely disappearing on drying. It 
ripens early. 

Beca Ruja. — Tree of medium size, and moderate bearer. 
Fruit small, and suitable for oil. Ripens early. 

Belmonte. — A beautiful elongated fruit, smaller at the calyx, 
larger at the blossom end. Deep blue-black. Ripens evenly. 
Makes good oil, and can be pickled ripe or green. Ripens 
early. 

Columella. — Tree vigorous and prolific. Fruit before ripe of 
a light golden yellow, turning to wine red, and when ripe dark 
purple. Makes excellent pickles in the semi-green state, and 
is quite deficient in bitterness. Makes a fair pickle when 
ripe. It gives a large per cent of oil, but not of high grade, yet 
very good for blending. Fruit ripens unevenly, and is very 
sensitive to frost. 

Correggiola. — A vigorous grower and prolific bearer. Makes 
a very high-grade oil, and with proper pruning can be made to 
yield a good crop annually. The fruit dries very readily and 
releases the oil easily under pressure. When grown on hill- 
sides and light soil is liable to rather excessive bitterness, 
which is at first very noticeable in the oil, but passes away as 
the oil stands. 'It does best on rich soils. Ripens in November. 



54 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTUEE. 

Grossajo. — Tree suitable for light soils. Fruit medium size, 
ripens unevenly, in November. The oil somewhat "fatty." 

Hispania. — Fruit large, very fleshy. Good for pickles in the 
green state. Ripens in December. 

Infrantio. — Fruit medium size; best suited for oil. 

Lucques. — Tree of medium size, a shy bearer. Fruit of 
crescent shape, makes excellent pickles, either ripe or green, 
and the oil is of highest quality. Ripens early and evenly. 

Macrocarpa. — Tree of dwarf habit — a bush — and a shy- 
bearer. Fruit of extraordinary large size, but deficient in oil, 
and only fit for pickling green. 

Manzanillo. — Fruit large, orange shape, vinous red cast 
before ripe, changing to deep black, with minute white specks. 
Tree of large dimensions, and prolific. The fruit makes excel- 
lent pickles, either ripe or green, and also an oil of high grade. 

Morinello. — Tree medium size, very hardy. Ripens early. 
Valuable for oil. 

Nevadillo Blanco. — Tree of fair size, and suitable only for 
specially favored localities. Fruit medium, ripens early. Best 
for oil. 

Nigarina. — Tree large and a thrifty grower. Fruit medium, 
and yields a high-grade oil. 

Oblonga. — Tree thrifty, and a regular bearer. Fruit elon- 
gated, makes excellent pickles, either green or ripe, and is also 
valuable for drying. It makes a high-grade oil. Ripens early. 

PendoiUier. — Tree handsome, thrifty, drooping in character, 
very prolific. Fruit large, and very showy. Makes excellent 
green pickles, and a high-grade oil. Ripens early. 

Pendulina. — A handsome, tall tree, and a very good bearer. 
Fruit medium large, excellent for pickles, either ripe or green. 
Rich in oil. Ripens evenly and early. 

Piangente. — Tree of weeping habit, very prolific. Fruit 
small, and valuable for oil. Ripens early. 

Picholine ("St. Chamas"). — Tree large, and a strong grower. 
Fruit oblong, pickled green. Ripens early. 

Polymorpha. — Tree handsome and prolific. Fruit large, 
makes excellent green pickles, and an oil of fair quality. 
Ripens early. 

Precox. — Tree medium, prolific. Fruit oval, small, purple 
black, valuable for oil. Ripens early. 



CALIFOENIA. OLIVE CULTURE — VARIETIES. 



55 



Racemi. — Tree of medium size, prolific and hardy. Fruit 
small, and suitable for oil. Ripens early. 

Razzo. — Tree of medium large size, a shy bearer. Fruit 
small, and suitable for oil. Ripens late. 

Regalis. — Tree of medium size. Fruit large, and only suit- 
able for pickles. Ripens late. 

Rubra. — Tree of medium size, very prolific. Fruit of medium 
size, and makes oil of high quality. Although the fruit is 
small, it makes good pickles. Ripens early. 

Salonica. — Tree of medium size, a shy bearer. Fruit large, 
and suitable for oil. Ripens late. 

Santa Catherina. — Tree of medium size. Fruit extra large, 
and good for pickling green. 

Sevillano (Spanish Queen). — Tree strong grower, with spread- 
ing branches; requires rich soil. Fruit large, pickled green. 
Ripens early. 

St. Agostino. — Tree of medium size. Fruit green, large, and 
good for pickling green. 

Sweet Olive. — There are two varieties grown, one producing 
large fruit and the other small berries. The fruit is sweet, 
without bitterness, and best suited for drying. 

Uvaria. — Tree of medium size, vigorous and hardy. Fruit 
of medium size, dark blue, borne in clusters. Makes a fair oil, 
and fairly good pickles. Ripens early. 

Verdale. — Tree of dwarf habit, a shy bearer, and very sensi- 
tive to cold. Fruit is suitable for pickles. Ripens early. 

The following is a list of other named varieties : 



Ascoli 


Gentile 


Mortino 


Pecudo 


Attica 


Giogliaio 


Mortin 


Pilloro 


Bianchetta 


Gordal— (Sevil- 


Mortellino 


Pignolo 


Bella di Spagna 


lano) 


Nigretta 


Picio 


Bellotudo 


Gremignolo 


Nocillara 


Puntarolo 


Carrasqueno 


Hervaza 


Obliza 


Racimal 


Casalivo 


Huff's Spanish 


Occhino 


Racinoppe 


Cajon 


Javaluno 


Ogliaro 


Ragghio 


Champion 


Lavaguino 


Oleastro 


Ragialo 


Colchonudo 


Lechino 


Olivastro 


Rastrellino 


Columbaro 


Madrileno 


Oriolo 


Redondillo 


Cornicabra 


Mammolese 


Palono 


Rosseldino 


Cucca 


Marcherito 


Palazzriolo 


Salvatico 


Dalmatian 


Maremmano 


Palomino 


Taggiasco 


Dolce 


Mignolo 


Patronese 


Trillo 


Empeltre 


Monopolese 


Perugino 


Tondo 


Favoral 


Morchiaio 


Pesci Atino 


Varal Blanco 


Frantojo 


Marajolo 


Piangenti 


Verdigo 


Gargnan 


Morinello 







56 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

ORNAMENTAL VARIETIES. 

Olea Apetala. — Olive without petals, has elliptical oval leaves, 
quite entire. The flowers, without petals, as its name indicates, 
are disposed in bunches, and are very beautiful. Native of 
Holland. 

Olea Americana. — Olive tree of America. It is found in the 
Carolinas and Florida. It is an erect plant, with lanceolate 
leaves, elliptical, rather oblong, pointed, smooth, entire, solid, 
glossy on the upper face, and of a fine yellowish-green. It blos- 
soms in June; its flowers are arranged in close bunches; its 
bracts are persistent, united, and small. 

Olea Capensis. — Olive tree of the Cape of Good Hope. Very 
dwarf and bushy plant, two feet high. Its branches are 
rough, whitish, tetragon. Leaves opposite, oval, rounded, very 
large in comparison with those of the European varieties; quite 
entire, solid, stiff, of a fine dark and gloomy green on the 
upper face, and pal'e beneath. It blooms at different times. 
Small white flowers, disposed in elegant and showy divergent 
bunches. One variety only, with elliptical wavy leaves and 
green pendicles, is cultivated. 

Olea Emarginata. — Tree grows in India to a height of sixty 
feet. Branches are opposite, gray, and striated; has the leaves 
opposite, oval, rounded, notched at the summit, quite entire, 
solid, wrinkled, of a fine lively green on both faces, the pendicle 
short and wrinkled. Flowers larger than any other of this 
species, bell-shaped, in four small divisions, beautifully disposed 
in terminal bunches. 

Olea Exasperata. — Rough olive tree, blooms in May. Orig- 
inally from the Cape of Good Hope. Bushy plant of about 
five feet high; erect and dark branches; leaves opposite, 
oblong, obtuse with a point, quite entire, solid, glabrous, five 
or six inches long; numerous white flowers in trichotomous 
and terminal flowery tufts. 

Olea Ezcelsa. — Olive tree of Madeira. Small plant, having 
an erect, gray, and branching stem ; leaves lanceolate, elliptical, 
pointed and not smooth like the Olea Americana, but with 
the edges reflected, quite entire, solid, shining, of a dark green 
color on their upper face. Flowers in dense bunbhes, the 
bracts leafy, the flowers cup-shaped and persistent, the higher 
caducous, large, leafy. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE EXTRACTING OIL. 



57 



Olea Fragrans. — Odoriferous olive tree from China and 
Japan. Tree grows from three to six feet, having branches 
more flexible than those of the other olive trees. 

Olea Rubra. — Resembles the Olea fragrans; its leaves are 
larger and its bearing is also more arborescent, but it produces 
scanty flowers, and its flowers are very small and do not differ 
from those of the more common species. 

Olea Serratifolia. — Tree with leaves indented like a saw. 

There are also the Olea Chrysophylla, Olea Floribunda, Olea 
Arborea, Olea lUcifolia, Olea Ferruginea. 



EXTRACTING OLIYE OIL. 




*"The mode of ex- 
tracting oil from the 
olive, which was prac- 
ticed thousands of 
years ago, still obtains, 
but with machinery 
better adapted for 
economical work, 
steam being substitut- 
ed for the labor of men 
and animals. To In/ 
able to obtain the'--" 
largest quantity of oil 
possible from the olives 
they must be on the 
trees till ripe, and 
shriveled — but quan- 
tity is at the expense of ||; 
quality. The finest 
grade of oil can only 
be obtained by gather- 
ing the fruit while it is ',. 

yet hard, but Suffi-OUve crusher a 

ciently ripe to allow 

the pit to be squeezed out without carrying any of the flesh 




;uniili)^; fust built in thebtate, aside 
from the one at. Sail Diego Mission. 



*Hon. Frank A. Kimball, of National City. 



58 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

with it. Early in the season the olive may become quite 
black before this condition is reached, but later, when the 
weather gets cooler, the olive may be ' ripe' when per- 
fectly 'green.' Immediately after being gathered the olives 
are spread, one or two inches deep, on trays or racks, 
which may be placed one above another, leaving space 
for circulation of air, great care being exercised to prevent 
them from heating (in which case the oil is spoiled for table 
use), and when a sufficient quantity of moisture has been 
evaporated they are ready for the crushing mill, which, with 
its appurtenances, must be made of materials which cannot 
absorb odors — metal and stone, as much as possible, being 
used — and the same care and cleanliness exercised in viaking 
the oil must be continued until it is in the bottle. After the 
olives are crushed (which is done under stone or iron rollers 
that are made to revolve in a large stone or iron basin in 
which about three hundred and fifty pounds of olives are 
placed and which constitutes a 'charge'), the pulp is placed 
in a tub of proper size, made of very narrow staves placed 
a little distance apart and bound with strong steel hoops 
which are hinged so that on being opened the pomace may be 
easily removed, and a light pressure brought to bear on it, and 
an oil of first quality, or 'virgin olive oil,' is produced. The 
pomace is then removed and recrushed and again subjected to 
pressure sufficient to secure a second grade of oil. It may 
be again crushed, at the same time adding hot water to assist 
in liberating the remainder of the oil, when a still greater 
pressure is used. This gives an inferior grade, which is used 
for light or lubricating. There yet remains some oil in the 
pomace, which may all be utilized by the soapmaker in the 
manufacture of castile soap. The residuum is applied as a 
fertilizer. In the process of pressing the pulp, the fruit juice 
and oil, with a considerable quantity of pulp, runs from the 
presses into large tin tanks. The oil gradually rises to the top 
and is skimmed off and poured into the settling tanks, where it 
must remain for from sixty to ninety days, when a natural pre- 
cipitation will have thrown down nearly or quite all foreign 
matter, and the oil is ready to pass through a filter, which is 
made by lining a conical bag, made of heavy filtering felt, with 
several thicknesses of white cotton-batting. It is again 
filtered through druggist's filtering mats, after which it is ready 



^sm- 



% 



60 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

for bottling. Care in handling olive oil does not cease when it 
is transferred from the filter to the bottle. It is exceedingly 
important that light be excluded and that it be stored where 
an even and reasonably cool temperature is secured. When 
offered for sale only 'sample' bottles should be shown, and 
these are not to be sold. A purchaser should decline to take 
a bottle of oil which has been placed where the sun's rays 
or even light has been allowed to reach it. When transferred 
to the kitchen the bottle should never be left uncorked and 
should be kept in a cool place in the dark." 

*"The berries are dried before crushing, as it is necessary to 
evaporate a portion of the water of vegetation which they con- 
tain. If, however, they are left out on the trees until shriveled, 
which is proof that the necessary evaporation has already taken 
place, no drying is needed after picking. This late picking is 
not best. If dried by the sun it requires about fourteen days. 
This plan cannot be depended upon, excepting in years when 
the fruit ripens early, and we have continuous sunlight, with 
moderately warm weather. By artificial heat ranging from 
110° to 130°, the drying can be done in less than forty-eight 
hours. The crushing and pressing should follow without 
delay; that is, the fruit taken from the drier in the morning 
should be crushed and pressed the same day. Long intervals 
or delays in the process from picking the fruit to expressing 
the oil tend to rancidity. To make perfect oil requires a 
perfect system in the whole management. The capacity of the 
press, the crusher, the drier, and the number of pickers should 
correspond or be about equal. All fruit picked during the day 
should be in at night, cleaned the following morning, and go 
into the drier immediately after the previous day's drying is 
taken out. The heat or temperature of the drier ought to be 
so graded as to complete the work in forty-eight hours, and it 
is better that it should be under 130° rather than above. 
Economy will necessitate in the business a system in the differ- 
ent branches of the process admitting of no delays from the 
beginning to the end. My drier has a capacity of five hundred 
square feet of surface, and will contain at one time over two 
thousand pounds of olives, equal to five pickers of four hundred 
pounds each per day, and as much as the crusher and press I 

*Hon. Ellwood Cooper, of Santa Barbara. 



62 



STATE BOAED OF HORTICULTURE. 



am now using can work. The almost universal method of 
crushing the berries is by a heavy stone, similar to a millstone, 
which is rolled around on the edge in a deep circular groove, 
or trough, and by its weight does the crushing. A beam passing 
through the eye of the stone and working on a journal in the 
center of the circle with a horse attached to the outer end of the 
beam, is the simplest way to do the work, and the plan that I 
have adopted. The circumference of the trough depends some- 




The Crusher. 

what on the size of the stone. The one I am using is four feet 
high and six inches thick, and the diameter of the trough in 
which it works is six feet ; the length of the beam is fifteen feet. 
This crusher is amply sufficient for an orchard of one thousand 
trees. It cost about fifty dollars. A stone five feet in diameter 
and two feet thick would crush in eight hours a sufficient 
quantity of berries to make one hundred gallons of oil, and by 
working it night and day the crop of ten thousand trees. It 
would be better, however, to have two stones half the thickness 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE EXTRACTING OIL. 63 

of the above, one following the other in the same groove. The 
horse should work on the outside of the building containing 
the crusher. To make one hundred gallons of oil each day- 
would require two good presses. The one best adapted for the 
purpose, so far as I have seen, is that used for making 
oleomargarine. Such presses could, with very little expense, 
be worked by the horse power used for crushing the berries, so 
that one man could do all the crushing and pressing. The 
press I am using is an old-fashioned wooden beam press. The 
beam is twenty-six feet long, and with a large box filled with 
rock suspended at the extreme end, the power can be increased 



The Power House— power operated by horse power from an independent 
building. 

to one hundred and fifty tons. The press with the differential 
pulleys cost about $150. Such a press cannot be improved 
upon for expressing the oil, but the additional labor and the 
time lost in changing are so much greater than would be 
required for the oleomargarine invention, that the latter would 
facilitate the work and be cheaper in the end, besides taking 
up so much less room. The crushed olives are put in the press 
in cheeses about three feet square and three inches thick, with 
wooden slats between each cheese. Ten or more cheeses can be 
put in at each pressing. I use coarse linen cloth to contain 
the crushed olives. The fluid that is expressed is put in large 
tanks and left for sixty to ninety days, when the oil will 
separate, and being lighter will rise to the top, where it can be 



64 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

drawn off. The pomace after the first pressing is recrushed, 
and by pouring hot water over it a second quality of oil is 
expressed. The refuse can then be used for fuel, for feed for 
pigs, or for making a third quality of oil. If for the latter, it 
is thrown into vats, boiling water poured over it and left to 
ferment, when the oil still remaining will be liberated and rise 
to the top." 

* " The Mission olive on my place at El Quito, in Santa 
Clara County, has always proved very difficult in oil extraction, 
on account of the amount of solid matter which holds the oil 
and the water of vegetation together. A great deal has been 
said about making olive oil with the olives absolutely green, 
but so far we have not succeeded at El Quito, and with the 
Mission olive quite ripe on my place it has proved very diffi- 
cult to separate the oil from this mass. Any one who has 
made olive oil has probably encountered this difficulty. After 
the olives are pressed there runs out a mass of olive oil, the 
water of vegetation, and solid matter. In a little while it 
settles; the oil remains at the top, and the mixed mass in the 
center. If the oil cannot be separated in a few hours from 
this mass it is liable — I do not say it always will, but has a 
tendency — to ferment, and this is the great difficulty in 
extraction. In making olive oil with the Mission olives with- 
out drying, the result seems to be that the water of vegetation 
is in such large quantity that it holds the oil to itself and to 
the solid matter too long. * * * The process of oil extraction 
from olives grown along the foothills proved much easier than 
from those at my place, and the quality of the oil much superior, 
so that it seems that we shall find perhaps in the hills the point 
at which the Mission olive may be as fine as any other. * * * 
I think that eventually we shall perhaps find the particular 
olive best adapted for each particular locality. Where the soil 
is over-rich the tendency is to produce too much solid matter. 
As in wine-making, there is always the difficulty of having so 
much solid matter that it cannot be removed before the wine 
has been affected." 



* Edward E. Goodrich, Report of Third Olive-Growers' Convention (1893), 
p. 24. 




:mm 







5oc 



66 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

t 

* "I have six olive orchards in different locations. The one 
on the lowest land is in what is known as black adobe. When 
it gets wet no animal can travel over it. It is probably sixty 
feet above the level of the sea. Another is in black adobe 
that is probably one hundred and sixty feet above the level of 
the sea; another is in sandy loam, composed of soil washed 
down from hills and mountains. I have another orchard that 
is in what we call red lands, something similar to the red 
lands about Redlands, four hundred feet above the level of the 
sea and on a side hill. I have, also, alongside of it, at the 
same height, an orchard in solid black adobe, within a quarter 
of a mile of the same place. I have another about four hun- 
dred feet above the level of the sea, in sandy loam. Of course 
I make oil from these olives as they ripen. But I have the 
trees in a great many different locations under different 
circumstances, and thus I have ripe fruit in some orchards 
perhaps a month before it is ripe in others, so that I can 
begin early and continue the oil-making until late. The 
oil I made two years ago I had in seven different tanks or 
vessels. That made from one orchard, first; and from a dif- 
ferent orchard, second; third, fourth, and so on, down to the 
end of March, when I finished. Excepting the first tank, I 
could see no difference in the oils. No man could detect a 
difference in taste, color, or weight. Regarding the fatty 
matter that Mr. Goodrich speaks about in the Mission olive, 
on some lands, there is so much fatty matter that the oil is 
too thick. As a matter of absolute knowledge as to the diffi- 
culty in extracting the oil from the different orchards, I have 
not been able to discover any; but my olives are always very 
perfectly dried. I have four or five different drying-houses. 
The olives are put in these drying-houses in very thin layers, 
and the heat is kept at about 120° F.; they are not taken out 
until they are thoroughly ready for the crushing, and that is a 
great factor in making oil. The probability is that one half of 
the weight passes oft" in the moisture, and after I get these 
olives in that condition they will be spongy and rather greasy; 
that is, if one puts his hand on them he can tell in the dark 
whether they are ready to crush or not, by simply feeling 
them. If they are allowed to go beyond this condition and 

* Hon. Ellwood Cooper, Report of Third Olive-Growers' Convention 
(1893), p. 26. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — EXTRACTING OIL. 



67 



become hard the oil cannot be extracted. When the olives are 
dried as I have described, I have not discovered any difficulty 
in separating the oil from the solid mass of pulp." 

Time to Gather the Fruit for Oil Extraction.*— "I 

commence picking in December, or as soon as the olives turn 
a purple color — some of them probably only a reddish color, 
one side partially green, but ripe enough for making oil. They 
require more drying then than they do in the month of March 
or April, when the water will have evaporated mostly from the 




Gathering olives, showing the use of the " Titus" extension ladder oii wheels. 

fruit while hanging from the limb. That, of course, has to 
be governed by the intelligence of the person managing the 
drying. It is supposed that the oil is of a lighter color made 
earlier than it is when made later in the season; but as we 
make it all in the same tank I do not apprehend there is very 
much difference as to the color of the oil or as to the quality. 
In Europe they dry the berries almost altogether in the sun- 
light. In the coast counties here that is impossible, because 
we may have a series of foggy days during the process of 
drying which would render the work impossible." 
*Hon. Elhvood Cooper, of Santa Barbara. 



68 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

PICKING APPARATUS. 



The picking by hand of such small fruit as olives, from 
large trees, becomes a very important factor in the success of 
olive culture, and must be done expeditiously and as cheaply 
as possible. The fruit of young trees is picked by the use of 
ordinary stepladders, but to reach the fruit of large trees from 
twenty to forty feet high requires special contrivances, of 




Gathering olives by the use of stepladders. 

which there are many in use. The old method of knocking 
the berries off with a pole is not practiced in this State, as the 
injury to both the fruit and the tree is too great. In several 
orchards there is used a common ranch wagon with a platform, 
on which are fastened several ladders that lay up against the 
tree. The pickers gather the fruit by pulling it with both 
hands into an apparatus of canvas made in the form of a 
scoop. The berries are then passed through a powerful fan- 
ning mill, such as used for cleaning grain, which blows out all 
leaves, rubbish, and dirt. They are then ready for the drying- 
house. Mr. Cooper uses what is known as the "Titus" ladder, 
mounted and supported on wheels (see illustration on page 
67). These ladders are very convenient, as they are wheeled 
about with ease, and do not injure the tree in any way. 




''^s^sst: 



^ ■ 



70 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 



OLIVE OIL FILTERING OR CLARIFYING/ 



"This is a simple process. The most common method is to 
have a series of five or six boxes, one above the other, each with 
cotton batting in the bottom. The oil passing the sixth will be 
beautifully clear and ready for market. I use cylindrical tin 
vessels holding about three gallons each, one fitting in the other, 
in tiers of three, with fine wire sieves in the bottom of each. On 
these sieves I place two or three layers of cotton batting. The 
oil is passed from one tier to the other until clear. The clarify- 
ing can be done by sunlight; also, the oil can be bleached and 
made much lighter in color, but not without injuring it. When 
it is adulterated, artificial heat is necessary in the process. 
When once heated it loses a part of the nutty flavor, and is 
liable to become rancid when exposed to the air. It should be 
kept in an ordinarily cool place, not exposed to sunlight or 
heat; neither should it be handled any more than is absolutely 
necessary in the filtering and bottling, and should not be 
shaken after bottling. The mucilage contained in the oil will 
not separate for a long time after the oil is ready for use, and 
as it does not injure it, is not therefore objectionable. It will 
sometimes form in the bottles like globules of water, or in 
films, settling to the bottom as sediment, and when shaken 
will give the oil a muddy appearance, which, with the common 
prejudice against all table oils that are not perfectly clear, 
renders it unsalable, as consumers consult more the eye than 
the taste. The oil is better when new and fresh, and what is 
gained in appearance by its remaining a longer time in the 
tank is more than lost in its freshness and delicacy of flavor." 

*Hon. Ellwood Cooper, of Santa Barbara. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE PICKLING, ETC. 71 



PICKLING, PROCESSING, ETC. 



Olives are pickled in four stages of ripeness: (a) Green — 
before ripe; (6) Reddish cast — when the olives have become a 
dark red color, before changing to black; (c) Ripe — when the 
olives have become black; (d) Dead ripe. 

Green Olives. — The fruit is picked with care, into lined 
baskets, just as it has reached full size, and before indications 
of ripening begin, which is shown by tints of red forming on 
the fruit. 

After years of experimenting in the production of pickled 
olives, I have obtained best results by pursuing the following 
course: The olives are placed in shallow vats, which have previ- 
ously been half filled with water, to prevent any fruit from being 
damaged when being emptied into them. The vats are filled 
with fruit to about seventy-five per cent of their capacity. A 
lye solution is then made in another vat, either above the one 
containing the fruit or near it. Fifteen pounds of pure potash 
or Greenbank powdered caustic soda are dissolved in a wooden 
tub, containing from five to ten gallons of water. The potash 
or caustic soda is first placed in the tub and the water added. 
If the soda be used, the water must be cold; if the potash be 
used, the water must be hot. The soda generates great heat 
and readily dissolves in the course of a few minutes. In 
another tub is dissolved six pounds of lime, which is allowed 
to settle. The clear liquid is then drawn off and added to 
the lye. Water is then added to make in all one hundred 
gallons of solution. The plug in the vat containing the fruit 
is then drawn out and the water in which the olives have been 
is allowed to run out. The fruit is then covered with the lye 
solution. The room must be darkened and no current of air 
allowed to pass through it during the changing of the lye, for 
exposure to light and air will change the color of the fruit from 
green to a coffee brown. The fruit is kept in this condition until 
the bitter principle is neutralized by the lye, which varies, accord- 
ing to variety, from twelve to sixty hours. The lye is then allowed 
to run out, and immediately water is run in and the vat filled 



72 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. ' 

to the top. The water is changed every day for four or six 
days, until every trace of lye is removed, which can be told by 
testing. The fruit is cut with a knife, and if there is no lye 
around the pit it is then time to add the brine. At first it is 
best to put a light brine — six ounces of salt to the gallon of 
water — on the fruit, because it prevents the fruit from discolor- 
ing and shriveling. After the fruit has been thoroughly 
pickled and the color firmly set, so that it will not discolor on 
being exposed, it is put into a stronger brine made of twelve 
or fourteen ounces of salt to the gallon of water, and in three 
to four weeks it is ready for market. 

The success in pickling green olives so that they will retain 
that delicate green color, depends on the care and precision 
taken in running off the lye, the immediate covering of the 
fruit with water, the darkened room, the prevention of draughts 
passing through the operating-room while the water is being 
changed, the purity of the chemicals used, and the care in 
making the brine. 

Reddish Cast.^Olives of a reddish cast, or before fully 
ripe, are selected and pickled separately. If cured by the lye 
process, they keep longer than fully ripe fruit pickled by the 
same process. If cured by the water process, they become 
greatly discolored, owing to uneven ripeness. 

In pickling olives in this state of ripeness, it is best to add 
to the lye solution the clear liquid of at least ten pounds of 
lime, to set the color. 

Ripe. — This state of ripeness is indicated by the jet-black 
color olives assume. The fruit must be perfectly sound. They 
must be picked from the tree by hand, and the trees gone over 
several times, unless they be of a variety of even ripening. 
After having been assorted, they are placed in vats half full of 
water, to prevent bruising, and when three-quarters full the 
water is run off and the fruit covered with the lye solution. 
They are kept in the lye until the bitter principle becomes 
neutralized, which varies, according to variety, locality, soil, 
and climatic influences, etc. During the operation the fruit 
should be tested from time to time by taking out a few, 
washing them in clear water, and then cutting the fruit with 
a knife. If the lye has only penetrated a short way they 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — PICKLING, ETC. 73 

should be left longer in the lye, or until all trace of bitter- 
ness is removed. The lye is then run off and water run 
in immediately, which is changed every day or so, until no 
trace of lye is found in the fruit. A light brine, made of six 
ounces of salt to the gallon of water, is then put over the fruit, 
in which the fruit is kept a week or more. This light brine is 
then run ofi', and a stronger brine, consisting of fourteen ounces 
of salt to the gallon of water, is put on the fruit. It is very 
essential that the first brine should be weak, as a stronger 
brine tends to shrivel the fruit, which destroys its commercial 
value. After the olives have been in the last brine two or 
three weeks, they are ready for market, and must be then put 
into a specially prepared brine. Olives grown in varied 
situations differ in bitterness, and it often happens that a 
second (or a third) application of lye becomes necessary to 
neutralize the bitter principle in the fruit. 

Dead. Ripe. — Many prefer pickles made from dead ripe fruit, 
■L e., fruit that has shriveled on the tree. The processing of 
fruit on a large scale at this stage of ripeness necessitates 
extreme care. It will not withstand the lye treatment, and it 
it is only occasionally that any degree of success has been 
attained by the water process. Families, however, find no 
difficulty in processing olives in a small way at this stage of 
ripeness, and they are most palatable, owing to the abundance 
of oil in the fruit. 

Water Process. — While this process is the oldest in use, it 
is one that requires patience and care. Well-cured olives by 
this process keep longer and possess more nutrition by way of 
percentage of oil than fruit which comes in contact with 
lye and which must naturally lose a certain per cent of oil 
while undergoing pickling. The olives are gathered when 
black or of a purple color, placed in wooden vats or barrels, 
and covered with fresh water, which is changed every day 
until the bitter principle is removed. Many growers change 
the water every other day, and claim that the bitterness is 
more quickly extracted. The extraction of the bitter principle 
requires from thirty tc sixty days, according to conditions. 



74 



STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 




Slitting board, or cutting device fur biul. 
olives. 



Slit Olives, Water Cured. — By no method is there a more 
appetizing olive pickle put up than by this process; while it is 
very simple, more care is required than in any other. The 

fruit must be choice, 
well selected, and of even 
ripeness. The olives are 
picked by hand into 
baskets or boxes lined 
with burlap or cloth and 
something placed in the 
bottom to keep them 
from being bruised. 
When they are brought 
in from the field they are 
at once turned into bar- 
rels of water. A lot of 
the berries are dumped 
upon a padded table, 
which rests upon a barrel filled with water. The help 
standing at these tables pick out the blackest ones and run 
the rest down into the water. These black ones are the ones 
cured. The help (women preferred) seated at tables with 
cutting knives prepare them for the treatment. The knife is a 
block of wood with a hole just large enough to allow a good 
sized olive to pass through. There are four little knives 
(although two are preferred by many) of very thin steel pro- 
jecting into the hole. As the olive is pressed through it is 
given four straight, even cuts, and then falls below into 
a keg of water. The olives remain in these kegs (the water 
in which is changed every day or two) until the bitterness is 
removed, when the olives are put into brine and are ready for 
market. The fruit, being slit, requires less salt than when pre- 
pared without slitting. Too strong brine has a tendency to 
injure the flesh of the berry and soften the fruit. Brine made 
of ten ounces of salt to the gallon of water is best suited for 
slit olives. After the fruit has been put into kegs or barrels 
the brine is liable to become "strong," due to leakage, evapora- 
tion, or exposure to the air. It should be drawn off at inter- 
vals and replaced with newly made brine. ■ Fruit should never 
be allowed to remain in brine that has become foul; but when 
the proper precautions have been taken, brine should keep in 
prime condition for a season or more. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTUKh: — PICKLING, ETC. 75 

Lye Process. — I have heretofore recommended the use of 
potash instead of caustic soda, because potash has not the 
bleaching effect tliat caustic soda is known to possess. From 
the results of former experiments I also recommended the 
gradual neutralization of the bitter principle in the fruit, by a 
weak solution of potash, changing the same from two to four 
times until this was accomplished. In recent experiments I 
find that caustic soda can be successfully used, but with the 
addition of lime. The caustic soda used must be pure, the lime 
being added to prevent bleaching and to set the color. Caustic 
soda, or any other solution (even water), takes away the natural 
color of the fruit. Lime when added restores to the fruit the 
color removed by the caustic soda and renders the fruit of a 
uniformly dark color, which, while artificial, is not easily 
detected from the natural. Again, caustic soda is obtained in 
the market strictly pure, and in a powdered state, requiring no 
boiling to dissolve it, only the addition of water. The same 
applies to the lime, thereby doing away with the necessity of 
purchasing boilers and fuel, which are required when potash is 
used, these articles being expensive and cumbersome, especially 
when large quantities of fruit are to be processed. The strength 
of the lye I now use on both ripe and green fruit, although 
varying according to variety and state of ripeness of the fruit, 
is as follows: 

Powdered caustic soda, pure 15 pounds. 

Lime 6 pounds. 

Water 100 gallons. 

Place the caustic soda in a tub or bucket made of wood (oak 
preferred), add slowly five to ten gallons of cold water, and stir. 
In another vessel slack the lime in about the same amount of 
water. Allow the lime to settle; then pour the clear liquid 
into the caustic soda; add water to make in all one hundred 
gallons of solution, and apply to the fruit cold. The fruit is 
kept in this lye solution until the bitter principle has entirely 
disappeared. The lye is then drawn off and immediately fresh 
water run in, in fact it is best for the water to run in as the lye 
is running out. The water is changed every day until all 
trace of lye is removed, then brine is added. 

Olives in Oil. — Olives in oil form a most appetizing dish, 
and are greatly relished. They do not need special prepara- 



76 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

tion. Olives pickled by any process, although ripe, are taken 
from the brine and covered with pwj-e olive oil. They may be 
eaten immediately, but improve in flavor if allowed to stand 
over night. For this purpose the slit olives are most preferred. 

Other Recipes. — There are many other recipes in vogue 
for pickling olives. The following are used by some of the 
leading growers: 

By Ellwood Cooper, of Santa Barbara. — For ripe olive pickles, 
gather the fruit when of purple color. They must be picked 
and handled with great care, being dropped into water to avoid 
bruising. In pickling, we handle the fruit in water, and aim 
when changing the water to get the olives which are at the 
bottom one day on top the next, changing the water every 
day. By this careful method none will turn out defective. 
After changing the water every day for thirty or forty days, 
according to ripeness, make a mild brine of best Liverpool salt, 
about half as strong as would bear an egg, and leave the fruit 
in the brine for two or three days. Remove from the brine 
and wash in cold water, taking care as before not to bruise the 
fruit. Then make a brine to bear an egg, boil it, and pour over 
the fruit when cold. 

By Frank A. Kimball, of National City. — The olives are 
carefully picked and must be handled without bruising. A 
good stage of maturity is when the fruit is quite red and before 
it has turned purple. When picked the fruit must -be immedi- 
ately covered with a solution of concentrated lye, in the propor- 
tion of two ounces of lye to each gallon of olives, and every olive 
must be entirely covered by the lye solution. A portion of the 
solution should be frequently drawn off and poured on top to 
keep it of equal strength. After twelve hours examine and 
see how far the lye has penetrated. When it has nearly 
reached the pit (which is easily shown by breaking open some 
of the fruit) draw off the lye and replace with soft, clear 
water, which should be changed once or twice a day until no 
trace of lye is left in the fruit. This is best determined by 
testing with litmus paper. After this add salt to taste, provided 
the olives are to be used immediately; but if they are to be 
kept for future use the brine must be made of the same strength 
as for preserving meat, and when required for use may be 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — PICKLING, ETC. 77 

freshened to taste, using cold water for the purpose. Perfectly 
ripe olives prepared in the same way are far more delicious, but 
must be picked and handled with extreme care so that none 
shall be bruised; they will not keep so long as those pickled 
before having reached such maturity. During the process of 
pickling, the olives must not be exposed to light or air. It is 
important that only one size of olives should be processed at 
the same time, else the smaller ones will be spoiled before the 
larger ones are " done," and it is absolutely essential that 
everything used in processing olives should be perfectly " sweet," 
as any offensive odor will be absorbed and the fruit rendered 
worthless. 

By A. D. T hacker, of Pomona. — On receiving the fruit from 
the orchard, I sort it into three sizes by means of a grader 
made especially for olives; then each size is separated by hand 
according to color. This is essential, in order that the work of 
neutralizing the bitter principle may be uniform in all respects, 
for too much care cannot be given to the removing of the lye 
as soon as it has reached the pit of the fruit, and in extracting 
the lye from the fruit, for if left in the lye solution or water too 
long, a soft or mushy olive will surely be the result. When so 
graded and separated the olives are placed in cement vats, and 
covered with concentrated lye made to the consistency of one 
can to five gallons of water, a cover being put over them to keep 
them under the lye. I lift the cover and carefully stir them as 
often as once in six hours, and continue to do so until all the 
bitter principle is neutralized. The lye is then drawn off and 
water turned in; in fact, the water is turned in as soon as the 
lye begins to flow out, in order to continually keep the olives 
under cover, thereby not exposing them to the air. As soon as 
the lye .is all out I wash the smut* from the fruit (which now 
readily leaves the olive), keeping the outlet in the vat open so 
that all smut or dirt may readily pass out. When the olives 
are clean and bright I then close the outlet, letting the olives 
remain under cover away from air and light. I change the 
water every six hours until all the lye is extracted from the 
fruit, using pure artesian water. The length of time required 
to neutralize the bitter principle in the fruit depends largely 
upon the variety of olives and the condition of the weather just 

*Refers to black smut which exists in the bay and coast counties or 
wherever the black scale abounds. 



78 STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

before picking the fruit from the trees; never less than twenty- 
four hours, and many times from two to eight days, changing 
the lye once or twice, depending upon the length of time required 
to neutralize the bitterness. The time required to extract the 
lye from the fruit also varies, depending upon the variety of 
the fruit and other conditions. When all the lye is extracted 
from the olives I remove the fruit from the vats (using wire 
shovels) and put it in barrels containing brine made of Liver- 
pool salt and artesian water, using fourteen ounces of salt to 
each gallon of water. The barrels, after being headed up, are 
put aside for ten days, at the end of which time, if the olives 
are to go to market, the barrels are rolled out, the brine drawn 
off, and the barrels refilled with brine that has been boiled, 
skimmed, and cooled ; if the olives are not to go to market the 
brine is drawn off and the barrels refilled with unboiled brine 
and again set aside until ordered to market, at which time the 
brine is again drawn off and the barrels refilled with boiled 
brine as above. 



QRADINQ. 



The grading of olives for pickling is very important. Large 
berries require a much longer time for the lye to penetrate to 
the pit in neutralizing the bitter principle than do smaller 
or medium-sized ones; therefore, if berries of all sizes were 
placed together in the lye solution, the medium-sized and 
small ones would have to remain therein until the larger ones 
became processed, and thus would be greatly damaged by 
remaining in the lye a greater length of time than was neces- 
sary. After trying all the graders recommended — some of 
which have done excellent work in grading other fruits, sucji 
as prunes, etc., but which were either too slow or unfit for 
grading olives — I perfected a grader which, for rapid work, 
accuracy in grading, etc., is not excelled. This grader consists of 
three trays, made of one-quarter inch material, twenty by forty- 
six inches, fitting one into another, with slats of three-quarter 
inch half-round molding extending the length of the tray. 
The slats are lined with cloth, which is wrapped around the 
slat before it is nailed down, to prevent bruising the fruit. The 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — PESTS. 79 

olives are dumped into the upper tray, and by a gentle lift of 
one end the olives roll toward the other end. The small ones 
pass through the apertures and are held by the lowest tray, it 
having a bottom. The first size is held by the upper tray and 
the next by the one in the middle. These two sizes are the 
ones to be pickled. If other sizes are wanted, other trays with 
apertures of different sizes are added. The trays containing 
the different grades of fruit are separated and the fruit put 
into different vats. The fruit of the lower tray, being too small 
for pickling, is separated from leaves and rubbish, by passing - 
it through a bean or raisin blower, and converted into oil. 



PESTS AFFECTINa THE OLIVE. 



The olive has so far enjoyed freedom from the insect pests 
existing in European olive belts, which are yet unknown in 
this State. The following are the most formidable pests that 
the growers have to contend with: 

Black Scale {Lecaniuvi olea, Bernard). — This scale is 
widely distributed over the State, particularly in the coast and 
bay counties. It does not seem to thrive in the interior 
counties, as the intense heat of summer destroys the young 
during breeding time. The excrement from this scale, being 
deposited on the leaves and fruit, forms a smut, which is very 
detrimental to the growth and fruitage of the tree and also 
detracts from the real value of the fruit either for pickles or 
for oil. 

The most approved remedies employed for the destruction of 
this scale on the olive are the following: 

Kerosene Emulsion — Cooper's Formula. 

. Kerosene, 150° test 5 gallons. 

Common soap (laundry) IJ-^ pounds. 

Water - - 234 gallons. 

Boil the soap and water until the soap is thoroughly dis- 
solved; place in a tub or barrel, add the kerosene, and churn 
with a dasher or pump through a nozzle until emulsified; then 



bO STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 

use, first diluting one gallon with six and a half gallons of 

water, and to this mixture add two and a half pounds of 

good home-made soap dissolved in hot water. All the mixing 

should be done with hot water, and the emulsion should be 

applied at a temperature of 140° F. During spraying great 

care must be taken not to allow the kerosene to rise to the 

surface of the water. The best way to prevent this is by one 

man doing the stirring while the other men do the pumping 

and spraying. 

Kahles' * DistiUate Solution. 

Distillate 28° (untreated) 5 gallons. 

Hot water 5 gallons. 

"Whale-oil soap 1}4 pounds. 

The whale-oil soap must first be dissolved in the water; then 
add the dissolved soap to the distillate. It is important that 
the distillate be placed in the mixing vessel first, then place 
the dissolved soap on top. Then attach your spraying pump 
to the bottom of the vessel in which you are mixing the com- 
pound, and keep pumping it out of the vessel through the 
spraying pump back into the vessel, until the whole becomes 
of a rich creamy substance. Keep pumping or churning it 
through the pump until it becomes a complete emulsion, with- 
out a speck of free oil in sight, which will take from ten to 
fifteen minutes. When properly emulsified, it should increase 
in volume about one third, because it becomes aerified. 

If the ground is in good condition, containing proper 
moisture, and the trees are healthy and growing, you can 
apply the spray in the proportion of eleven parts of water 
to one of the emulsion. Always put your emulsion in the 
apparatus first, then add the water. The stock compound and 
the cold water will mix as readily as milk and water, and 
when finished should resemble milk in all appearances. If 
the trees are dormant, do not use it so strong; say, about 
twelve or fourteen gallons of water to one gallon of the stock 
compound. When spraying be careful to observe any parti- 
cles of oil which may not have been thoroughly emulsified, 
and which rise to the surface. In this event, do not pump it 
all out, but only that which is the correct emulsion, and when 
near the bottom empty the oil off. 

* F. Kahles, Superintendent of Crocker-Sperry Lemon Grove, Montecito. 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — PESTS. 81 

About two hundred gallons of the stock mixture can be 
made for $6.25. The distillate costs 5 cents a gallon, and the 
soap about 5 cents a pound. Two hundred gallons of stock 
mixture, at 11 to 1, give 2,200 gallons of spraying solution. 

This solution is made the same as the kerosene emulsion, 
only this distillate contains all the natural oils and strength 
of the crude oil, nothing being taken therefrom except the 
asphaltum. Therefore, it is a great deal stronger, and stays 
longer on the trees without evaporating. Orchardists should 
use extreme care in the preparation of this solution and apply 
it on the trees at the proper time and under competent super- 
vision. 

Rosin Wash for Newly Hatched Black Scale. 

Rosin 18 pounds. 

Caustic soda (78%) - 5 pounds. 

Fish oil 2>^ pints. 

Water, to make ..- 100 gallons. 

Place the rosin, caustic soda, and fish oil in a boiler, pour 
over them about twenty gallons of water, and cook thoroughly 
over a brisk fire for at least three hours; then add hot water, 
a little occasionally, and stir well, until you have not less than 
fifty gallons of hot solution. Place this in the spray tank and 
add cold water to make the necessary amount. The great 
secret in the successful preparation of this wash is never to add 
cold water when cooking, otherwise the rosin will be precipi- 
tated. It is difficult to again get it in solution. After the 
materials are thoroughly cooked and diluted with the proper 
amount of hot water, the solution should be poured into the 
tank through a very fine brass wire sieve or piece of thin open 
cloth. This will remove any debris that would become lodged 
in the nozzle, causing annoyance and delay when spraying. 
This solution will be found very effective, if applied in 
September or not later than the end of October. It is one of 
the cheapest and most effective washes, costing less than one 
cent per gallon. 

Twig Borer {Polycaon confertus, Le Conte). — This borer at 
times does great injury to olive trees, especially to those of 
recent planting. It bores into the stem, above a twig, down- 
ward, and deep into the pith, also gnawing considerable of the 
wood. The branches generally break of their own weight, de- 
6oc 



82 



STATE BOARD OF HORTICULTURE. 



stroying the symmetry of the tree. It is well to look the trees 
over, especially if newly set out; whenever one is found having 
a hole emitting sawdust, poke a sharp wire into the hole and 
give it several turns, thereby destroying the borer, 
-which is invariably inside. If the limb has broken 
or cracked from the effects of the borer, it is best to 
jcut it off. As the trees grow older they somewhat 
resist the ravages of the borers, which seldom 
Mature insect, attack large limbs. The beetle is about half an 
en arge . jnch in length, of a dark pitch color, having on its 
wing-covers small or very minute hairs, and is generally cov- 
ered with a yellowish powder. 





Branch of olive tree infested with black scale (Lecanium olea), showing 
larvae of Rhizohius ventralis feeding on same. 

Natural Enemies of the Black Scale. — The black scale has 
numerous natural enemies, among which is the twice-stabbed 
ladybird {Chilocorus bivulnerus), which aids in lessening their 
number to a considerable extent annually; also, many other 



CALIFORNIA OLIVE CULTURE — PESTS. 



83 



of our native insects, like the lace-wing fly {Chrysopa calif or- 
nica), syrphus fly {Catabomha pyrastri), and a minute internal 
parasite {Dilophogaster calif ornica) . 






Male, enlarged. Larva, enlarged. Female, enlarged. 

Bl.\ck L.\.dybird {Rhisobius ventralis). 

The combined efforts of all of these friendly insects did not 
materially decrease the scale until a black ladybird {Rhizobius 

ventralis ) was introduced 
by the State Board of 
Horticulture from Aus- 
tralia. Singularly, 
though this ladybird has 
increased enormously 
wherever it finds humid 
atmospheric conditions, 
in interior localities, 
where the atmosphere is 
dry, it has not developed 
with such rapidity. 
„ ,, ,. „, . , . , ,, f ,. , ., ,. The ladybirds are col- 

Colleetiug Rhizobius beetles for distribution -^ 

among orchards infested with black scale. lected and placed Oil the 

trees just before sunset. The beetles fly from tree to tree, and 
in this way scatter throughout an orchard. Many thoughtful 
growers aid the ladybird in colonizing by carefully collecting 
the beetles from certain trees and liberating them on other 
portions of the orchard. Before winter sets in inverted corn 
husks are tied among the branches of the trees for the purpose 
of giving shelter to the ladybirds, so that they may not perish 
during the cold winter months. 




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